The Assassins' Great War
by TheKaizoku
Summary: Like many other major events, the Great War aka World War I was influenced by both Assassins and Templars. This is the story of Darko Kerzhakov, a Serbian orphan who becomes involved in the age-old battle between the two factions. If you liked the story or have any comments, please review, favourite and follow.
1. Chapter 1

Darko Kerzhakov was an eighteen year old Serbian living in Sarajevo. He was an orphan, his parents killed when Darko was thirteen. Along with his older brother, Nikolai Kerzhakov, four years older than him, Darko had managed to migrate from Serbia into Bosnia and Herzegovina, which was under the rule of Austria-Hungary. Darko and Nikolai lived in a shophouse owned by a middle-class half-Serbian, Aleksandar Mikovic.

The day was 28th of June, 1914. Archduke Franz Ferdinand was on a visit to Sarajevo, which had naturally drawn large crowds. Darko and Nikolai wanted to see the Archduke, so they went out and became just two of the many among the many.

Darko saw the motorcade enter the street, with the Archduke in one of the vehicles of the motorcade. "Brother, look! The Archduke himself!"

But Nikolai's attention was not on the Archduke. Instead, he was focused on one of the men, a young man who Nikolai guessed was not more than twenty. The young man was standing a distance away from the central police station. As the motorcade neared Nikolai saw the young man reach for his pocket.

"Go home, now," Nikolai ordered, pointing in the rough direction of the shophouse they lived in. "Now!"

He had never seen his brother with such a serious look on his face. As Darko nodded and ran off, Nikolai headed in the direction of the young man, Nedeljko Cabrinovic.

As Darko reached the end of the street, where the motorcade had entered the area, he heard an explosion. Turning around, Darko saw the tyres of one of the vehicles in the motorcade, the fourth vehicle, simply pop. Without hesitation Darko continued running.

From a safe distance away Darko saw a small mob outside the shophouse, hurling items at the wall of the building. He saw a police officer nearby, but not doing anything. Darko ran up to the police officer.

"Herr! Why are you not doing anything?" Darko asked in weak German, as he pointed at the shophouse. Darko could see that the officer was German.

"Get away from me, you piece of shit," the officer replied crudely. He drew his baton, about to hit Darko with it.

However, before the officer's baton could come down on Darko, a hand shot out, grabbing the officer's wrist firmly. Before the officer could react the hand twisted the officer's wrist. The officer howled in agony and dropped the baton.

"Watch out, you Serbian filths," the officer warned as he moved away. "One day you'll be crushed under our mighty hands!"

Darko looked to see who had saved him. To his surprise he saw Aleksandar, dressed in a set of clothing Darko had never seen him wear before. In a fleeting glance one would think that it was just ordinary civilian clothing, but upon closer inspection Darko found that the robes seemed odd. It was civilian clothing but at the same time it was not.

"Where is your brother, Darko?" Aleksandar asked.

Darko shook his head. "I don't know. We were watching the Archduke's motorcade pass through the central police station when Nikolai told me to escape. Shortly after I heard an explosion!"

"This isn't good," Aleksandar sighed and shook his head. "Listen, Darko. Right now there's an anti-Serbian riot going on throughout the entire city. You need to get to somewhere safe."

As Aleksandar ran off Darko looked at the slip of paper in his hand, which Aleksandar had left him. Crushing the paper and stuffing it into his pocket, Darko's fingertips brushed on a new object, which he had no recollection of being in his pocket.

Taking the object out, Darko gasped at the dagger. He wondered how the dagger had gotten there, until Darko heard shouts coming from the crowd. Putting the dagger back in his pocket Darko spun around. The mob was beginning to take notice of him.

"Time to move," Darko muttered and broke into a sprint.

One street away from his destination, Darko had the luck to run into a military officer. The military officer, noticing that Darko was Serbian, smiled coldly.

"Look what we have here," the military officer said in a mocking tone. "A mighty Serbian. You look like a street urchin, a piece of filth. Perhaps I will take out the trash, as I like to call it."

The military officer's hand reached for a pistol which was holstered at his waist. Darko did not wait for the officer to finish drawing the pistol, as by then it would be too late. Instead Darko pulled out the dagger and plunged it into the officer's abdomen.

"Wha…what," the officer was stunned.

Picking up the pistol the officer had dropped, Darko aimed it at the man as he retrieved his dagger. The officer was terrified, as he thought Darko was going to shoot him.

"Please, don't kill me!" the officer pleaded. "I beg of you, please!"

Darko holstered the pistol and ran off, leaving the injured officer alone on the pavement.

Arriving at his destination, Darko saw that it was a small manor, which was atop a hilltop he had yet to climb. There was a lone man by a guardhouse which was at the foot of the hill. Darko walked up to the lone man.

"Greetings, sir," Darko said politely. "I am looking for a man named Gustav de Monaco."

"Ah, yes," the man, an elderly gentleman, probably one of the staff of the manor, said. "And what would be your name?"

Darko bit his lips, choosing whether or not to tell his real name. "My name is Darko Kerzhakov."

The man remained indifferent upon hearing the Serbian name. "Yes, your name has been mentioned in the household before. Go in, the master will meet you when he returns."

"The master?" Darko was puzzled.

"The master of the manor, Gustav de Monaco."

Soon, a car pulled up outside the manor, and Gustav entered the manor, accompanied by the man from earlier. "This is Darko Kerzhakov, monsieur."

Gustav walked up to Darko and shook his hand. "I am Gustav de Monaco, a pleasure to meet you. I heard from my butler over here that you were looking for me?"

"Aleksandar told me to come here," Darko said, assuming that Gustav knew the name. His assumption was correct.

"I see," Gustav nodded with sympathy. "Times are hard right now for you Serbians. Where is your brother?"

He was surprised Gustav knew of his brother. "Nikolai Kerzhakov, sir. I have no idea of his current whereabouts."

"Of course I know his name. When your brother and Aleksandar arrive we will begin."

Begin what? Gustav thought.


	2. Chapter 2

Fifteen minutes later, Aleksandar walked in, with Nikolai beside him. "Brother, you're alive!"

"Of course I am," Nikolai grinned. "I can take care of myself."

Gustav smiled at the new arrivals, as he gestured for them to sit. "Darko has been kept in the dark for too long. We should tell him."

Aleksandar was the first to tell Darko. "We are members of an ancient Order, dedicated to upholding the freedom of humans. We are known as the Assassin Order, dedicated to fighting the Templars, who wish to control free will."

"Templars? They died out long ago, I thought?" Darko was dumbfounded.

Gustav continued for Aleksandar, "That's what we wanted the world to think, for both parties. Then we continued our feud, this time in the shadows. Let me tell you something, Darko. Both your parents were Assassins before they were murdered."

"Murdered?" It was the first time Darko was hearing details of what happened to his parents.

"By Templars," Nikolai added, with a solemn nod. "In our father's dying breath he told us to seek out his colleagues here in Sarajevo."

"I am Gustav de Monaco, Master Assassin and leader of the Assassins in Bosnia and Herzegovina. Welcome to the Assassin Order, Darko Kerzhakov."

Over the next few weeks, Darko learned the way of the Assassin, physically and mentally. By the time he was done, it was the 22nd of July, nearly a month since the assassination of the Archduke. Darko was also unaware of what was happening in the outside world, as he spent most of his time either training or resting.

"Politics is at work here," Gustav told Darko. "Various nations, including your homeland Serbia and Austria-Hungary, are in the midst of diplomatic manoeuvring. I sense bad things are going to happen soon."

True enough, the next day, Austria-Hungary made a series of exactly ten demands to Serbia, which would come to be known as the July Ultimatum. Upon seeing the list of demands, Darko shook his head.

"Serbia would never agree to the demands," Darko commented. "They will choose war over accepting the demands."

Nikolai nodded in agreement. "Now it's only who will declare war first."

"We're not going to wait for war to happen," Gustav said as he walked into the room. "Darko, I have your first mission. There is an Austro-Hungarian Army Offiziersstellvertreter, with certain ties to one of our biggest threats, a German General named Erich Albert. The Offizier's name is Florian, and you'll likely encounter him in the streets of Sarajevo, terrorising the civilians, in the following days."

On the second day in Sarajevo, Darko heard talk about Florian. He eavesdropped on a conversation between two policemen, at the same time remaining undetected.

"Have you heard of an Offiziersstellvertreter named Florian?" the first officer asked.

The second officer replied, "Can't say I have. What about that lad?"

"Apparently he's in the Austro-Hungarian Army. And in all this mess, Florian's been terrorising the civilians here in Sarajevo. You know what's worse? I overheard the higher-ups saying that we can't do anything to him. Something about him being well-connected."

"The way you put it, it seems that this Florian's a prick," the second policeman commented.

The first policeman nodded. "He is commonly seen in Bascarsija, being the prick he is. I'd advise you to stay away from those areas."

Bascarsija, the bazaar of Sarajevo as well as the city's cultural center. That was where Darko had to go.

It was not difficult to spot Florian. He was walking down the street, accompanied by two lower-ranking soldiers. Darko tailed the three soldiers, waiting for the right time to strike.

Eventually the trio stopped in front of a market stall, as Florian inspected the goods being sold at the stall.

Releasing his Hidden Blade, Darko stabbed the first soldier in the back. The soldier was dead even before he hit the ground. As the second soldier turned around Darko thrust the Hidden Blade into the soldier's heart.

"Assassin!" Florian sneered, pulling out a Roth-Steyr M1907 pistol. "Surrender or prepare to die!"

Without hesitation, Darko lunged forward, slashing the man's throat mercilessly. As Florian toppled onto the ground Darko took his pistol and fled.

However, on his way back to the manor, Darko was stopped by two policemen, who were obviously anti-Serbian. "Let us see your papers," the first one demanded.

Darko lashed out, punching the first officer right in the jaw. As the policeman retreated to examine his injury, Darko advanced on the second policeman, delivering a roundhouse kick to his stomach. While the two were distracted Darko escaped.

Back at the manor Darko was greeted by Nikolai and Gustav. "How was your first mission, Darko?" Nikolai asked.

"Not bad, brother," Darko replied. "The man is dead. And I made sure I wasn't followed back here."

"This isn't good, my Assassins," Gustav said, seemingly deep in thought. "I received word from Assassin allies on the inside. They report that there is a high possibility of war breaking out. And it's not any of the wars we have faced before, but a large, international war."


	3. Chapter 3

It was in the mid-afternoon of the 28th of July, 1914. Gustav returned from the city with grave news to tell the three Serbian Assassins.

"Austria-Hungary has declared war on the Serbians," Gustav reported. "The Russian Empire seems like they've been expecting all this, for they declared general mobilisation on the twenty-fifth. Fortunately our Brotherhood in Russia is strong, with good and loyal allies."

"Can you name us some of those allies, Master?" Darko requested.

"Vladimir Lenin, leader of the Bolsheviks is one of our allies, with his late brother a member of the Assassin Brotherhood," Gustav informed, smiling at the look of shock on Darko's face. "Nikola Tesla as well, having worked with the Brotherhood before."

"What do we do now?" Nikolai queried.

"Now is not the time to strike yet," Gustavo told them. "My sources have also said Britain and the French may form an alliance with the Russian Empire, in order to oppose Austria-Hungary. When the time is right I will tell you to strike."

On the eleventh of August, Darko arrived in the town of Loznika, Serbia. After receiving reports of increased activity near the border of Serbia and Austria-Hungary, Gustav ordered Darko to go and investigate, and gave him a mission, if the man himself was there. The mission was to find and kill a Feldwebel of the German Army, whose platoon had been sighted near Serbia's border.

It was night, and Darko was stayed in an inn in the town. The inn was small and rundown, but was not out of place, so it suited Darko just fine. In addition, the inn faced the Drina River, which was probably where the Austro-Hungarians would be attacking.

Trying to get some rest, Darko heard gunshots, which made him jolt awake. Looking out of the window, Darko saw soldiers, hundreds of them, crossing the nearby Drina River. Darko zipped open his duffle bag and took out a Carcano M91 rifle. Loading the rifle with bullets, Darko opened the window of the inn and took aim.

"Bang!" the rifle cried as a bullet flew out. A second or two later, the bullet buried itself in the shoulder of a soldier, who was in the midst of swimming across the Drina River. The poor soldier, unable to swim with his injured arm, drowned.

Quickly aiming for a second soldier, Darko fired the rifle. This time the bullet hit the soldier right in the forehead, as he climbed out of the river. The impact of the bullet caused the soldier to fall back into the river, his blood seeping into the water.

Unfortunately that was all Darko could shoot, because a second later the window where Darko was firing from was showered with bullets.

A small bunch of Serbian soldiers, about a company or so of them, were stationed in the town, and immediately reacted when the gunshots were heard throughout Loznika. While the invaders were distracted by the Serbians who were rushing to defend their homeland, Darko slipped out of the damaged inn.

On the streets, Darko saw that the Serbians were losing. Although there was about a hundred of those soldiers, there were much more Austro-Hungarians. He could glimpse soldiers still making their way towards the Drina River, attempting to cross into Serbia.

Darko saw a dead Serbian soldier lying beside a machine gun, which he was trying to wheel towards the river, probably in an attempt to repel the invaders. "Rest in peace," Darko muttered to the dead soldier before he pushed the machine gun, which was on wheels, towards the river.

In roughly thirty seconds the machine gun was empty. Darko had let loose the hell stored inside the machine gun, which fired at a legendary rate of more than four hundred bullets a minute. Once the machine gun was empty Darko realised he had just unleashed two hundred and fifty bullets at the enemy.

In spite of that, the Austro-Hungarian soldiers were still advancing, their numbers still big even after the number of soldiers Darko had killed with the two hundred and fifty rounds. Some of them had noticed Darko on the machine gun, and were beginning to head towards him.

Unslinging the Carcano rifle which had been slung on his back, Darko shot the nearest soldier at near point-blank range, just as he began to draw his own pistol. Before the soldier even reached the ground Darko fired at the second soldier.

"Shit," Darko remarked, as his rifle emitted a click sound when he tried to fire, meaning that his rifle was empty. Slinging the rifle over his back, Darko turned in the opposite direction and ran.

In the afternoon on the twelfth of August Darko arrived in the town of Sabac, arriving slightly later than expected since he had stopped for a while at a small village along the way to rest. Luckily Sabac was still Serbian-controlled, but as Darko would later learn, not for long.


	4. Chapter 4

Hours later, Darko was well-rested, having been welcomed by the Serbian troops after he lied that he was a soldier that had managed to escape from Loznica.

That evening, a senior-ranking soldier, a Porucnik, rushed into the barracks. "Get your asses out there! The Austro-Hungarians are attacking!"

Darko grabbed his things and rushed out of the building. The Austro-Hungarian Army was attacking the town from all sides. It was a hopeless battle, but Darko hoped that he could find and kill the Feldwebel.

He encountered a Zugsführer of the Austro-Hungarian Army, who was alone but brave enough to face Darko. Darko, wanting to keep the Sergeant alive, drew his dagger instead of his rifle.

Pulling out a shortsword of his own, the Zugsführer charged at Darko. The latter parried the former's attack without difficulty, and knocked the dagger out of the Zugsführer's hand.

The Zugsführer tried to finish the fight by shooting Darko with a pistol, but Darko took his rifle out and aimed it at the Sergeant. "Put the pistol down," Darko ordered in German, which he was rather fluent in.

He obeyed, dropping the pistol onto the ground. "Very good. Now, with your hands where I can see them, come over to me."

Once the Zugsführer was close enough, Darko grabbed him, turned the man around and prodded him in the back with the Carcano M91. "Follow me, and don't make any sudden movements, will you? It would be unfortunate if I accidentally shot you right in the back."

Darko led the Zugsführer into a deserted allyway, where he stopped and ordered the man to turn around. With the rifle still aimed at the Zugsführer, Darko asked, "Do you know Feldwebel Lammert of the German Army?"

For just a fraction of a second, which an ordinary person would not have seen, Darko saw it. A flicker of recognition. That was quickly concealed. "I do not know anyone in the German Army. Maybe except for the names of German high-ranks, which I'm sure many of us have heard before."

"Enough of your games," Darko said as he jabbed the Zugsführer in the abdomen with the rifle. "A little squeeze of my trigger and you could be dead."

"There…there are many Germans with the nam…name Lammert," he stammered. "There might…might even be…be more than one Feldwebel with the name Lamm…Lammert."

"Feldwebel Lammert Bohn. Is that specific enough for you?"

Now with no more excuses, the Sergeant nodded fearfully. "He's in the cit…city of Szeged."

That was all he needed to know. Knocking the Zugsführer unconscious, Darko left the alleyway.

"Oh shit," Darko mumbled.

Outside the alleyway there were four soldiers surrounding a higher-ranking soldier. The first problem Darko realised that the soldiers were from the German Army, whose soldiers were generally more well trained and equipped than the joint army. The second problem was that the higher-ranking soldier the four Germans surrounded was none other than Feldwebel Lammert.

"I thought you were in Szeged," Darko said.

Feldwebel Lammert chuckled. "I saw you interrogating a poor soldier in the alleyway. Don't blame him, not many here know I'm actually not in the city."

"So why are you here, Feldwebel?" Darko asked.

"To kill you before you kill me. Men, get him."

Darko did not waste time fighting the soldiers or trying to keep them alive. Releasing his Hidden Blade Darko thrust it into the solar plexus of the first soldier, at the same time unsheathing his dagger and hurling it at the second soldier. The dagger was slightly off from where Darko had intended the dagger to hit the soldier, but it still killed the soldier anyway.

Retrieving the dagger from the fallen soldier, Darko caught a glimpse of Feldwebel Lammert fleeing. Ignoring the other two soldiers, Darko gave chase.

Lammert tried to get the Austro-Hungarian soldiers to attack Darko. But they were busy attacking the town and did not help Lammert. At least they did not attack Lammert, since they could see that he was German.

Eventually Feldwebel Lammert was cornered. Left with no choice, the Feldwebel fought Darko. He drew a pistol and aimed it at Darko.

"Not so cocky now eh, filthy Assassin?" Feldwebel Lammert sneered.

Darko still had one trick up his sleeve. He decided to show the German his trick. Raising one hand so his fist was aimed slightly above the Feldwebel's heart, Darko flicked his wrist slightly. The projectile went straight into the Feldwebel's heart, killing him instantly.

"Those French, not a bad invention," Darko nodded, impressed. The weapon he had just used was a Phantom Blade, which was a modification of the Hidden Blade developed by the French Assassins.

By midnight, Sabac had been captured by the Austro-Hungarians. Luckily by then Darko was already long gone from Sabac, now instead in the town of Cacak, which was in west-central Serbia.


	5. Chapter 5

Cacak was a town big enough yet considered not important to Austria-Hungary, thus making it suitable for the temporary headquarters of Field Marshal Radomir Putnik, Chief of Staff of the Supreme Command of the Serbian Army and Chief of the Serbian General Staff, and the Mentor of the Serbian Assassins.

"Voivoda, a Narednik claiming to have the name Darko Putnik wishes to see you. He claims that he has important things to tell you," one of Radomir's assistants informed. "With respect, sir, may I ask if this man has any relation to you?"

"No, he does not," Radomir answered. "Bring the Narednik in."

Entering the room, Darko bowed. "A pleasure to meet you, Voivoda. I am Narednik Darko Putnik, and I bring bad news. Sabac has been captured by Austria-Hungary."

Radomir swore. "Those bastards are going for the capital! You, go and mobilise the troops. The capital is more important than us, go!"

Once the assistant left, Radomir said, "Seems like you have something else to tell me. Why don't you say it?"

Darko raised his hand, allowing Radomir to see his ring finger, which had a mark on it. "I am one of you, Mentor. My name is Darko Kerzhakov."  
"Ah, the Kerzhakovs," Radomir nodded. "Your brother is Nikolai Kerzhakov, am I right to say?"

"You are correct, Voivoda," Darko answered. "I have come to you to report of my successful mission. Feldwebel Lammert Bohn of the German Army, a Templar, is dead."

"Well done," Radomir praised. "That German has been in a pain in our side for a while now. With his removal we are one step closer to General Erich Albert. Now, let me tell you something. Your brother, Master Assassin Gustav de Monaco and Aleksandar Mikovic have left Sarajevo. They are currently in the town of Visegrad, near the Serbian border."

At sunset Darko arrived in Visegrad on horseback. He proceeded to the tavern where the three of them were staying in and freed the horse. Entering the tavern, Darko was surprised to see that Aleksandar was the tavern-keeper.

"You're back, Darko!" Aleksandar said, as he looked around the tavern. The tavern was empty for the moment. "I take it that your mission was successful?"

"Yes, Feldwebel Lammert is dead," Darko replied. "I require a room to rest in. I'm exhausted."

Darko rested from the evening all the way to the late morning the next day. When he awoke he told the three Assassins of his journey, from Loznika to Sabac and finally to Cacak, before coming here to Visegrad.

"By the way, Master," Darko spoke to Gustav. "Mentor Putnik seemed to be unwell when I saw him."

"His health has been deteriorating as of late," Gustav nodded in agreement. "Field Marshal Putnik is, after all, approaching his seventies. He has also fought many wars, such as the Balkan Wars. If that's not already enough, he also has his duties as an Assassin Mentor to accomplish."

"Assassin," Gustav addressed Darko. "I will give you as much time as you need to rest. By Sunday you must depart for Istanbul, capital of the Ottoman Empire. Find the Mentor of the Turkish Assassins, Talia bin Rahmat, and tell her that the Ottomans have allied themselves with Austria-Hungary and the Germans. You must do so by the end of August."

Darko left a day before the deadline, on Saturday. He rode on a horse that had been given to him by Aleksandar. Roughly eight days later Darko arrived in Istanbul on foot, having released the horse a short distance outside of the city.

He made his way to the Galata Headquarters, which had been renovated many times over the past few hundred years, but still was the headquarters of the Turkish Assassins. It was a nondescript, relatively large building with a small courtyard.

Walking up to one of the plain, wooden doors, Darko knocked it. Soon the door was opened by a man in robes. "What do you want?"

"I am looking for Talia bin Rahmat," Darko informed the man. "Do you know where she is?"

Immediately the man's Hidden Blade sprang out and lunged at Darko. Darko sidestepped the attack and firmly held the man's hand, and with a few nimble movements of his fingers Darko unclipped the man's Hidden Blade.

Just then two more Assassins came out of the door, producing shortswords. Darko released his Phantom Blade, letting the two recent-arrivals see it. "I'm one of you, why the hell are you attacking me?"

The Assassin whose hand Darko was holding said, "We thought you were a damn Templar. Now, can you let me go?"

Darko released his grip of the man. As the man bent down to pick up his Hidden Blade, he said, "Let's go inside."

It was huge. From the outside the Galata Headquarters did not seem very big. But when Darko entered the building he realised that the headquarters was massive.

"Allow me to introduce myself," the man who had first attacked Darko said. "I am Master Assassin Omar bin Rahmat, brother to the one you seek for."


	6. Chapter 6

"Where is your sister, then?" Darko asked Omar.

Omar frowned. "My sister is being held by Templars in Corlu. The Templars demand the release of a Master Templar they think we have captured. However, we killed the Master Templar a while ago."

"What does the Master Templar look like?" Darko had an idea.

"He was born in the Kingdom of Serbia, a European country," Omar informed. "The reason I attacked you was that you looked similar to the Master Templar, even though he was dead."

"What if, I pretend to be the Master Templar?" Darko suggested with a grin.

One and a half days later Omar and three other Assassins were in Corlu, along with Darko, who was in fake chains. Omar had been contacted by the Templars and was asked to meet in an alleyway.

The five Assassins met at the rendezvous point, where the Templars were already waiting. Five Templars were present, including two Templars who were restraining Talia.

"Master Petrovic, is that you?" the Templar asked Darko.

"Of course it is I, you turdbag," Darko spat. "What took you guys so long? Do you know how long I was held by these Assassin idiots?"

"My apologies, Master Petrovic," the Templar took a small bow. "We have managed to strike a deal with your captors. They will free you in exchange for us freeing their Mentor, Talia bin Rahmat."

"Then hurry up and make the damn exchange!" Darko pretended to be exasperated. "I cannot wait to take off these chains and get my revenge against these kurvo."

Omar pushed Darko towards the Templars and tossed the head Templar the fake key that was supposed to unlock the chains. As the head Templar handed Talia over to Omar, Darko freed himself of the fake chains and released his Hidden Blade.

"It is time for you scumbags to die," Darko simultaneously slashed the head Templar's throat with his Hidden Blade.

Aiming at the nearest Templar, Darko fired a Phantom Blade at his exposed forehead, killing him almost immediately. Looking at Omar, Darko saw him produce a throwing knife and hurl it at the third Templar, leaving him mortally wounded.

Talia, although she was weak and bruised from being captured by the Templars, still had a lot of fight left in her and wanted to exact her revenge. She struck the fourth Templar, one of the two who was restraining her, right in the crotch. Before the Templar could recover from the blow, Talia delivered a spinning crescent moon kick to his head, rendering him unconscious.

"Leave that Templar alive," Talia told the other Assassins as she pointed to the one she had just knocked out. "Let one live to tell the tale that the Assassins are counterattacking."

Omar nodded as he pulled his dagger out of the heart of the last Templar.

Back at the Galata Headquarters, Talia thanked Darko for his help. "Which Brotherhood are you from, Darko? Are you from the French Brotherhood, since you possess a Phantom Blade?"

"No, Mentor," Darko replied. "I am under Gustav de Monaco."

"Ah, so Master de Monaco sent you here? What for, may I ask?"  
Darko took a deep breath, before telling her, "The Ottoman Empire has joined Austria-Hungary and the German Empire in the ongoing war, albeit secretly. I guess my Master suspects that there is strong Templar influence in the Ottoman Empire, since the Austro-Hungarians and Germans are also under heavy Templar influence."

"That is likely," Talia agreed. "But one thing is right for sure, the Templars wield a lot of influence here in the Ottoman Empire. We know that the Grandmaster of the Ottoman Rite of the Templar Order is Raqa Pasha, who is known to have the ear of the Sultan."

"Then we need to work our way up, until Grandmaster Pasha is dead," Darko said, clenching his fist in determination.

Days later, Omar had a mission for Darko. "A Chinese ship is set to arrive at the Galata Pier in a few hours time, with cargo on board which will be used to help the Ottomans in war. But that's not the main thing. The captain of the Chinese ship is a Templar sympathiser. Interrogate the sympathiser and destroy the cargo."

Dressed in an Ottoman regular's uniform, which had been provided by the Turkish Assassins, Darko made his way to the Galata Pier. He was unnoticed even though he was a Serbian in an Ottoman uniform, because the Ottoman Empire was a home to people of many races.

He saw the Chinese ship, the Kuai Jian, sail into the pier. Once the gangway was set up Darko boarded the ship and met with Li Jian, captain of the ship.

"I am Darko, a member of the Ottoman Rite of the Templar Order. Pleased to meet you," Darko shook the man's hand.

Li Jian fell for the trick right away. "Pleased to meet you, Templar! I am Li Jian, captain of this ship. I adore the Templars and have been wanting to join them for a while now."

"Very well," Darko nodded. "For your efforts I shall send a letter of recommendation to my colleagues in China."

"Thank you, thank you, sir!"  
"Let me test you on your knowledge," Darko said. "Name me other members of the Ottoman Templars, and try to give me descriptions of it if you can."

"This is…strange, Mister Darko," Li Jian was beginning to become suspicious. "You sound like you're trying to get information from me."

"Well done," Darko congratulated with a mock look of surprise on his face. "You have seen through my trick. Not many, even Templars, can see through tricks like that."

Li Jian smiled with pride. "Do I still tell you the names?"

"Why not? It will test your knowledge."

"Of course you will know of Raqa Pasha, Grandmaster of the Ottoman Templars," Li Jian began. "There are two Master Templars I know of as well, Emmanuel Camiletti, the Ottoman ambassador to Italy and Jorgen von Köln, a German mercenary leader based in the Ottoman Empire."

Darko had never heard of Jorgen von Köln before, but he had heard of Emannuel Camiletti before. Emannuel had been sent by the Ottoman Templars to Italy to convince the government, which was Assassin-influenced, to side with the Central Powers. They had already signed a secret agreement with France more than a decade ago, in 1902, which nullified Italy's membership in the Triple Alliance.

"Not bad," Darko nodded in contentment. "Tell me more about Jorgen von Köln."

But before Li Jian could tell Darko, five Ottoman soldiers stormed the ship, led by an Ottoman with a Templar ring. "Get the impostor!"

"Looks like I have been discovered," Darko said calmly, before firing a Phantom Blade at Li Jian's throat, killing him. He died with a shocked expression still on his face.

Darko drew his pistol, which he had brought with him all the way from Visegrad, and shot the Ottoman with the Templar ring in the forehead.

"Retreat now," Darko demanded. "Or your fates will end up like these two."

Once the Ottoman soldiers fled, Darko made his way to the hold of the ship. He found firearms and gunpowder there. Setting up a trail with some of the gunpowder in the hold, Darko fired a bullet at the end of the trail, igniting the trail of gunpowder. Darko then hurried off the ship and got as far away as possible.


	7. Chapter 7

Returning to the Galata Headquarters, which was not that far away from the Galata Pier, Darko met up with Omar and Talia, telling them that his mission was done.

"Some of our Assassins who were out reported hearing an explosion in the direction of the pier," Talia informed. "Was that your doing?"

"Probably. I destroyed the Chinese ship with gunpowder I found in the hold. I also had to kill five Ottoman soldiers led by one with a Templar ring, who discovered that I was a fake. Li Jian is dead as well, killed with a Phantom Blade to his throat."

"Well done," Omar praised. "Did you manage to get any information from the man?"

"I learned the identity of two Templars, who Li Jian claimed were Master Templars. They are Emannuel Camiletti and Jorgen von Koln. I know that Emannuel's a Templar, but who's this Jorgen?"

Talia shook her head. "We do not know who that man is. I will send my Assassins to investigate. You have done well, Darko. Your job here is complete, you can return to Gustav de Monaco now."

Back in the town of Visegrad, Darko found the tavern empty.

"Shit, now where do I go?" Darko muttered.

He made his way back to the town of Cacak, Serbia, where Field Marshal Radomir Putnik was.

"Mentor," Darko addressed. "Where is Gustav, Aleksandar and my brother? They are not in Visegrad anymore."

"Ah," Radomir said. "I believe they have left Bosnia and Herzegovina, heading for Bucharest, the capital of the Kingdom of Romania, which is currently neutral."

Three days later Darko arrived in Bucharest, searching the capital for a few hours until he found Gustav and the other Assassins. Entering the building they were currently staying at, Darko fell asleep almost at once.

"What happened to the tavern in Visegrad? And where is my brother?" Darko he had not seen Nikolai since arriving at the building.

Gustav frowned. "The tavern was attacked by Templar and Templar-affiliates. Your brother…he was captured during the attack."

"What?" Darko was shocked. "Where the hell is Nikolai now?"

"We don't know," replied Aleksandar. "But he was last spotted in Cologne, aka Köln by a German contact of the Assassin Brotherhood. He owns a small bookstore called the Gehirn Entwickler."

Darko swore. "How the hell am I going to get into Germany? It's not exactly peacetime right now."

Soon Darko managed to enter Köln, in the guise of a Romanian businessman. Aleksandar, who turned out to be skilled in forging identity documents, had made for Darko a set of fake documents, with his fake name as Adam Roschberg. The cover was that 'Adam' was in Cologne for business.

Entering the Gehirn Entwickler, Darko pretended to browse the bookstore for a while, before taking one of the books to the counter, where the German contact was.

"How much for this book, Herr?" Darko asked.

The bookstore owner replied, "Ten marks. You do know right, sir, that we have changed our currency to Papiermarks?"

"Of course I do," Darko said. "But ten marks is a tad too expensive? Perhaps you could give me for free, and I repay you with an investment in my business."

"What business?"

"A…bodyguard business," Darko replied. "My company protects people, for a price. I guarantee you, Herr, you will earn a lot if you invest in my business."

"I see. Maybe we can talk about this investment at a place somewhere more private? Let me bring you to the back," the bookstore owner then led Darko into the staff-only area of the bookstore.

At the back, the bookstore owner shook Darko's hand. "It is nice to meet a friend during such hard times. Tell me, Assassin, where do you come from?"

Their conversation just now had been a scripted dialogue to identify members of the Assassin Brotherhood.

"I was informed that you had heard of the whereabouts of Nikolai Kerzhakov? He was captured a period of time ago."

"Ah, yes. I take it that you are his brother, Darko? Gustav sent me a letter shortly before your arrival to inform me," the bookstore owner said.

"You are correct, I am Darko."

"Your brother has been taken to Wahn, a prisoner-of-war camp roughly thirty kilometres southeast of here. It is near-impossible to infiltrate the camp like this. Come with me, I have some items that could help you."

He led Darko into one of the rooms, where he unlocked a metal cabinet. Inside the metal cabinet were a few sets of German Army uniforms, along with some firearms that were commonly used in the German Army.

"Take your pick," the man gestured. "And you do know how to speak German, am I right?"

"My German is passable," Darko shrugged.

Darko selected a Luger P08 pistol as his firearm, and went to change into the German Army uniform. "The uniform you currently wear is of an Offizier's. Remember that."

He walked the thirty kilometres or so from Cologne to Wahn. There, Darko was permitted into the compound without any interferences.

"Offizier," one of the soldiers saluted as Darko walked by. "You are a new face, Herr. Where are you from, may I ask?"

Darko nodded at the soldier, acknowledging him. "I am Offizier Frederick, originally stationed in Sarajevo to help the Austro-Hungarians. I was sent here to look for one of the prisoners here."

"Who might that prisoner be, Offizier Frederick?"

"I believe his name is Nikolai Kerzhakov," Darko said.

"That man?" the soldier was surprised. "The talk is that he was transported all the way from Bosnia and Herzegovina. He is accused of aiding rebellious activities against Austria-Hungary and the German Empire."

"I know that," Darko said, acting impatient. "I was given orders from Berlin to bring the prisoner to Vienna, where he will stand trial."

"Before he can be transported, Offizier, you will need to see Oberst von Köln. He has given strict orders for the prisoner not to be released."

"von Köln?" Darko was surprised at the name. "By any chance is he Jorgen von Köln?"

"Do you know him?" the soldier was again surprised.

Darko nodded. "I know him as a leader of a bunch of mercenaries based in the Ottoman Empire."

"That is true. But he was given the rank of Oberst by some high-up in the army," the soldier explained. "Come, let me bring you to him now."


	8. Chapter 8

"Oberst, someone's here to meet you," the soldier said as he knocked on the door.

"Come in," Jorgen von Köln told the soldier.

Darko entered the office alone. "Allow me to introduce myself, Herr von Köln. I am Offizier Frederick, originally stationed in Sarajevo to help our ally Austria-Hungary."

"It seems like you already know who I am, so I will not introduce myself," Jorgen said. "What are you here for, Offizier?"

"I have received orders from Berlin to escort the prisoner Nikolai Kerzhakov to Vienna, where he will stand trial for his crimes," Darko lied. "It would be best if you send some men to accompany me, so that there will be lesser chances of the prisoner escaping."

Jorgen raised an eyebrow. "I was told of no such thing, Assassin."

Snick. "Seems like you already know, so there's no point in denying."

"Guar-" Jorgen was interrupted when his throat was pierced by the Hidden Blade. Blood flowed from his throat as Jorgen tried to finish the word, but could not find the energy too. A few seconds later Jorgen slumped over, dead.

Darko kept his Hidden Blade and left the room, making sure the soldier waiting outside did not see Jorgen's dead body. "Oberst von Köln has agreed to it."

"Very well, Offizier. I will lead you to where the prisoner is."

Once the soldier unlocked Nikolai's cell, Darko produced the Luger P08 and aimed it at the soldier. "Pass me the key and raise your hands up."

The soldier obeyed as Nikolai walked out of his cell. Darko forced the man into the cell and shut the door, locking it. "Don't bother firing your pistol in here. The Oberst gave orders to kill you if you fired a bullet," Darko lied as he walked off.

Returning to Köln, Darko returned the bookstore owner the German Army uniform and pistol. "Thank you for your help, sir."

"No problem," the bookstore owner said. "Any Assassin is a friend of mine."

"Do you have any idea on how we can return to Bucharest?" Darko asked. "After all, word will spread of Nikolai's escape, and he doesn't have any identity documents to show."

"Simple," the bookstore owner replied. "Enter the Russian Empire to the east of here, and make your way southwards back to Romania. The Russians are on your side, and will probably welcome you with open arms."

The bookstore owner was right. Darko and Nikolai were welcomed into the Russian Empire, more so when they were told Nikolai was an escaped prisoner-of-war.

Making their way southwards, the two of them finally arrived back in Bucharest exactly one week later.

"Never thought you would be the one doing the saving, younger brother," Nikolai grinned.

Gustav could not suppress a smile as well. "You have done well Darko. But in killing Jorgen von Köln you have also pissed off other Templars in the area. The only way now not to get killed is to kill your pursuers before they kill you."

"Be sure to tell me of those pursuers if you get word, Master," Darko said.

"I will."

All was peaceful for Darko for the next few weeks, who took the time to rest and train. However, his peace did not last for long.

"Darko," Gustav called as he entered the building, then realising that Darko was in the living room. "I have bad news."

"What is it, Master?"

"A team of men led by a Templar, Evidenzbureau senior officer Johann Ridge, are currently in nearby Craiova, searching for any leads on where you might be. Several Assassins who were stationed there are currently taking turns to keep watch on the team of men. What do you intend to do, Darko?"

"I intend to take them head-on, kill them before they become too much of a problem," Darko announced. "Please prepare a horse for me, Master, I will ride to Craiova soon."

One and a half days later he arrived in Craiova. Darko rode to one of the most popular taverns in the city, and strolled into the building.

Darko hollered, "Any of you gents or ladies could tell us where Johann Ridge is? There's a coin or two in there for those who give us information!"

One of the men stood up and walked over to Darko. "Assassin, allow me to introduce myself. I am Johann Ridge, now prepare to die."

In a second, Darko's Hidden Blade was out and flying towards Johann's throat. But Johann deflected the blow with his pistol, using it to stop the Hidden Blade in its path. Darko, surprised by the resistance, stumbled backwards a few paces.

Johann closed in, wanting to end the battle. Darko turned around and saw two of Johann's men nearing from the other side, to ensure that there was no escape for him.

With a flick of his wrist, Darko fired a Phantom Blade right into Johann's chest. With his dying breath, Johan ordered his men, "Kill…kill that scum."

Johann's two men circled around Darko, waiting for an opportunity to strike. Darko struck first, slashing the first man with his dagger.

Three more of Johann's men emerged from the crowd of civilians, who were unable to flee due to the men blocking the exit. Darko swore and drew his pistol, firing headshots at two of Johann's men, before dropping his weapon.

Darko felt a shortness of breath the same moment he dropped his pistol. He looked down, examining his body. Blood was oozing out of his stomach. He had been shot by one of the men!

"Sons of bitches," Darko mumbled, drawing his dagger and brandishing it at the circle of three men.

He would have lost the battle, if not for the intervention of a squad of soldiers, who launched a surprise attack from the main entrance.

A man in his early forties, with a full beard and an average build, was leading the squad of soldiers. Armed with a pistol, the man shot one of the attackers as his soldiers killed the other two.

"Seems like we have a troublemaker in this town, eh?" the man scanned Darko. "Men, get him and follow me."

The man led Darko, who was restrained by two soldiers, to a house, which was presumably the man's. Outside the house, he ordered the soldiers, "You may leave now. Lad, come inside with me."

As he walked into the house, Darko wondered who this man was. Was he going to throw Darko into another pit of fire, just after rescuing him from one?


	9. Chapter 9

Making sure that they were alone, the man sat down in the living room of the house, and poured Darko a cup of tea. Darko took the cup, swirling the tea in the cup but not drinking it.

"Who are you?" Darko asked as he smelled the tea. There was a certain fragrance to the tea, which he thought it smelt decent.

The man grunted at the question. "I am Elias, a Plutonier of the Romanian Armed Forces."

"Why did you save me? I see no mark on your ring finger, so you're probably not an Assassin. So why?'

Elias began, "Many moons ago, I was a Templar. Relax, lad. That was a long while ago. But I was unsatisfied with the Templars. They were cruel, willing to do anything to achieve their goals. Thus, I quit the Templars and moved over here, where I knew I could lead a rather peaceful life. Until you Assassins and Templars come in here and screw everything up!"

"Where are the other Assassins? I was told that there were Assassins posted here in the city."

"Johann discovered that his every move was being watched by those Assassins, and he decided that it could not continue. He and his team of men launched an attack on the Assassins here in Craiova, killing most of them. The few who survived, as I know it, are fleeing to Bucharest."

Darko said, "You make it sound like the Templar had a lot of men. Did you and I kill all of Johann's men at the tavern?"

"No, we haven't," Elias revealed. "Five men of Johann's team remain, in their temporary base of operations in Craiova. Darko, I will assist you in taking out these men, on one condition. Stay out of Craiova. I want to continue the peace I had in my life without Assassins and Templars."

"Fine, but I wish to do it alone."

Resting for around half an hour, Darko set off for the temporary base of operations Elias had mentioned alone. Darko's bullet wound had been patched up, though there was still a dull feeling of pain where the bullet had hit him.

"Who's there?" a voice came from within the building a moment after Darko knocked on it.

In the approximate voice of Johann Ridge, Darko answered, "It's me, Johann. Hurry up and open the damn door!"

The moment the door was unlocked, Darko kicked the door open as hard as he could. The door slammed into the man who had unlocked the door, knocking him unconscious. Darko walked in, closing the door behind him and pulling out his pistol

Hearing the loud slam, a second man had come out to investigate, with a dagger in his hand just in case. Upon seeing the man, Darko let loose a bullet at him. The bullet killed the man but alerted the other three men of Johann's team.

Swapping his pistol for his dagger, Darko waited at the staircase, hidden from the men's sight. When the third man came rushing down the staircase, Darko tripped him, making him slam his head against the wall. Right after the knock was heard, Darko stabbed the man in the back.

Swinging around, Darko released his Hidden Blade and slashed the fourth man's neck. The fifth man, seeing all the chaos the one killer had brought, ran for his life. But he was not fast enough. In a lightning swift motion, Darko re-drew his pistol and shot the last man in the back.

Turning the last man's body over, Darko found that he was still alive, but barely. "Who sent you all to find me?"

"Gen…General Eric…Erich Albert," the man stammered. "He…he will aven…avenge us."

Darko had heard the name many times before. Erich Albert, German General and high-ranking Templar. For ordering this, Erich will pay for it, Darko promised himself.

Returning to Elias' house, Darko told him that the job was done. "Keep to your promise, Darko Kerzhakov. I will provide you a horse for your journey back to Bucharest."

Back in the Assassins' temporary headquarters in Bucharest, Darko told the others what had happened in Craiova.

"That is not the first time we have heard of such people," Aleksandar said. "There are those that are sick of being a combatant in the Assassin-Templar War, and wish to get out of it while they still can. Luckily this man, Elias, is of the kinder type of these people. I have heard of such people killing both Assassins and Templars on sight without discrimination."

Gustav nodded in agreement. "You have done much for the Assassin Brotherhood, Darko. Now you may rest. Expect yourself to be sent out again nearer to Christmas."


	10. Chapter 10

Months passed without issue, and it was now December 20th, 1914. Winter had arrived, and even though the snow had not come yet, it was cold enough for Darko to be in his winter wear, which was a set of Assassin's robes modified for the wearer to withstand the bitter cold.

Darko was in war-torn Belgium, in the region of Ypres, where the Triple Alliance and Triple Entente were locked in combat, with German soldiers making up most of the Triple Alliance soldiers in the country.

To his surprise, Darko was on the German side. Darko had thought that Gustav was going to send him to the side of the Triple Entente, but Gustav had done otherwise.

"Offizier Frederick!" a soldier called out. For a moment or two Darko wondered who the soldier was calling, then he realised he was supposed to be Offizier Frederick.

"What is it?"

The soldier stopped in front of Darko and saluted. "Offizier, General Albert wishes to meet you in his tent."

"Lead me to him then."

Although Darko had only been with the Germans in Belgium for a week or so, he had built up a good relationship with the German soldiers, mainly Erich, who was known to trust people easily.

"Greetings, General," Darko said as he entered the tent. "I heard you were calling for me."

Erich nodded. "Christmas is nearing, Offizier. I intend to launch a strike on the enemy on the day right after Christmas. Maybe we can gain the upper hand. What do you think of that, Offizier Frederick?"

"Nein, General," Darko said. "It's too risky. What if the Entente is planning the same thing as well? It could likely end up as a bloody battle with a lot of casualties on both sides, which we don't want."

"Fair point, Offizier," Erich agreed.

Four days later, on the 24th of December, 1914, a historical event known as the Christmas Truce occurred. Soldiers from both sides were on No Man's Land, exchanging small gifts and souvenirs with one another.

"Wonderful, isn't it, Offizier?" Erich grinned. He was smoking English cigarettes, which had been given to him by a British soldier in return for a pack of German cigarettes.

"No doubt, General," Darko was genuinely smiling as well, as he sipped from a mug of alcohol.

Erich offered him a cigarette, but Darko politely declined. "Enjoy yourself, will you, Offizier?"

"I will, General."

Hours later, Darko spotted the Templar walking to one of the German hospital tents, accompanied by a few medics, and a single British medic which caught Darko's attention. Darko decided to follow them.

They entered the hospital tent. Seeing Darko, Erich explained, "One of the soldiers that we recovered from No Man's Land earlier was still alive, but injured. We're going to perform surgery on him now, with the help of a Tommy over here. He's a medic."

"Oh, I see. I'll stay outside the tent while you do surgery, then."

About one hour later, once the surgery was over, Darko entered the hospital tent.

"That's a nice ring you have there," Darko heard the British medic tell Erich.

Erich examined the Templar ring on his finger. "It's a nice ring. Why, you want it? I can trade it to you for your ring."

The medic raised a hand for Erich to see. Instead of a ring, there was a burn mark on his ring finger. Darko was both stunned and delighted to see the burn mark.

"Assa-!" Erich was interrupted halfway when the Englishman's Hidden Blade killed him.

Throwing the lifeless body onto the floor, the British medic turned to Darko, who had witnessed the whole thing. Before the medic could attack him, Darko released his own Hidden Blade for the medic to see.

"Nice to meet a brother," the British medic said as he kept his Hidden Blade. "Why are you here?"  
"Same as you," Darko answered. "I was assigned to kill General Albert as well, but it seems like you completed the task before I could."

The medic chuckled. "You won't take it to heart, will you? Nice meeting you, Assassin, but I've got to go, before I get caught and my ass gets hauled into a POW camp."

The German troops found that 'Offizier Frederick' had mysteriously disappeared, and was no where to be found. They naturally linked his disappearance to General Erich Albert's killing, and deduced that he was the killer. But nothing could be done since there were no records of an Offizier Frederick being in the region of Ypres in December 1914.

Darko was back in Bucharest at exactly on the 1st of January, 1915, on New Year's Day. Entering the headquarters, Darko said, "Merry New Year's Day, everybody."

Gustav came out of one of the rooms, holding a glass of wine. "Same to you, Darko! I trust that your job is done?"

"Yes, but not exactly. General Albert was killed by another Assassin, who had also been sent to kill the General."

Aleksandar laughed. "It appears that this Templar is not very well-liked! Tell me, Darko, who is this other Assassin that killed Erich?"

"He was a British Assassin posing as a medic. During the Christmas Truce, which I'm pretty sure you've heard of by now, he, several German medics and General Albert operated on a wounded soldier. After the operation, the Assassin and the General were talking about trading rings, but after showing the Templar the mark on his ring finger he killed General Albert with a Hidden Blade."

Nikolai was amused. "Quite cunning, the Assassin. Men like these are of great help to the Order, because sometimes you have to fight fire with fire."

"Well said, Nikolai," Gustav nodded. "Darko, you must be exhausted, after spending so many days in the battlefield. Go and rest."


	11. Chapter 11

Darko rested and relaxed for months, until late April of 1915. Recently Darko had learned from the local papers that the German Empire had begun to use poison gas in the war, which disgusted Darko.

"This is horrible! Don't you think so, brother?" Darko asked.

Nikolai nodded sadly. "It's amazing to see what people will do to win. Resorting to use of harmful gases? That's just cruel!"

At that moment Gustav entered the building. "Darko, you'll be returning to the Ypres region. This time, Nikolai will follow you."

"Huh?" both of them were stunned.

"A platoon of Germans known infamously by Assassins across the globe as the Templar Platoon has been sighted in the region, near a place called Roeselare."

Darko had heard of the place before, when he was in the First Battle of Ypres. Roeselare was a settlement being used as a campground for German soldiers, which was located not far from the city of Ypres.

"So you want my older brother and I to go to Roeselare and take out the Templar Platoon?"

"You are correct. But there's another thing you two will have to do. A cache of poison gas cylinders is known to be kept somewhere in Roeselare. Destroy the poison gas, without harming innocents if possible."

The two of them were provided uniforms, which had been sent by the bookstore owner in Cologne. But this time Darko would be posing as a Feldwebelleutnant aka Acting Lieutenant, and Nikolai's assistant. Meanwhile, Nikolai would be holding the rank of Oberleutnant, which was the equivalent of a First Lieutenant.

Arriving in Roeselare in the mid-afternoon on the 7th of May, Darko and Nikolai were welcomed by the German soldiers.

"Greetings, Gefreiter," Darko talked to a Lance Corporal. "Do you know of a Hauptmann named Masaru?"

The Gefreiter grinned. "Of course, Herr. I myself serve under him!"

Soon the two Assassins met with Hauptmann Masaru, a Japanese who had been born in Germany, to a family of Templars. Thus it was natural for Masaru to be leading an entire platoon of Templars and Templar sympathisers.

"Guten Tag, Hauptmann!" Nikolai said as he shook Masaru's hand. "Do you have somewhere more…private where we three could talk?"

"Certainly. Just follow me."

In a more private area, Nikolai lied, "We were sent by the Templars over here, after our superiors got word that there could be a traitor in the Templar Platoon."

"What?" Masaru was shocked.

Darko added, "It's true, Hauptmann Masaru. We were sent from the Order in Prague. If there is a traitor, our superiors find it most likely that their goal is to sabotage the poison gas supply."

"Is that so?" Masaru raised an eyebrow. "Well then, I'll post more guards in the warehouse where it is kept. That way, even if one of the guards is the traitor, he will be caught before his plan succeeds."

That night, when everyone else was asleep, Darko awoke. "Nikolai, I'll be off now. Make sure no one comes in," Darko whispered.

"Alright, stay safe, my brother."

Sneaking to the warehouse where the poison gas supplies were kept, Darko crept upon a guard who was more focused on staying awake than guarding the place.

The guard heard a sound, but did not know what it was, so he simply shrugged it off. The sound had been that of Darko's Hidden Blade being sprung. If the guard had knew he could have stood a chance of surviving.

He felt a sharp pain in his back, which made him jolt awake. "Aur-!" the guard was stopped halfway by a hand which covered his mouth. Turning around, the guard was surprised to see a man dressed in German uniforms armed with a Hidden Blade, which was currently in his body.

Pulling out the Hidden Blade, Darko pushed the guard onto the ground and brought a boot down on his mouth, preventing him from speaking and at the same time crushing his teeth. Seconds later the guard went limp, having lost too much blood from the wound in his back.

The next morning Nikolai and Darko were awoken by the same Gefreiter that they had met. "What is it?" Darko asked.

"You have to come see this, sirs!" the Gefreiter told them. "One of the guards has been found dead!"

Hastily getting ready, the two 'soldiers' made their way to the warehouse. Along the way, while they were alone, Nikolai asked softly, "You did this, Darko?"

"I did, brother," Darko replied as softly.

At the scene, Masaru and a small team of soldiers, some of them not with the Templar Platoon, examining the body. "What happened, Hauptmann? Your Gefreiter told us someone had been murdered!" Nikolai feigned surprise.

Masaru nodded and muttered to Nikolai. "I know how he was killed. Just take a look."

Kicking the dead soldier's body over, Masaru motioned to the wound on the back. "No matter where that is on the body, I recognise it. Do you, Niko? That is the work of a Hidden Blade."

"Shit," Nikolai swore, before telling Darko what Masaru had told him. Upon hearing what Nikolai had told him, Darko pretended to be stunned and swore as well.

"Does this mean that there really is a traitor in the Templar Platoon? And the traitor belongs to the filthy Assassins?" Darko whispered.

"Very likely, Feldwebelleutnant. How will you two settle the problem?"

Nikolai said, "We have already thought of a solution, Masaru. Here's how it goes…"

As part of the plan, Masaru posted no soldiers to guard the warehouse that night. Although it would make the traitor suspicious, there would be still a possibility of the traitor trying to sabotage the poison gas, Nikolai had reasoned.

Once it was dark enough, Darko struck. He crept up on Masaru, who had a lantern in one hand and a pistol in the other. Masaru swung around, to see the Feldwebelleutnant armed with a Hidden Blade.

"So you are the filthy traitor!" Masaru gasped. But before he could call for help, Darko slit his throat with the Hidden Blade.

Once he made sure that Masaru was dead, Darko returned to Nikolai. "Oberleutnant, Masaru is dead."

"Wonderful," Nikolai said. "Let's proceed to phase two."

Running to the Templar Platoon camp, Darko woke them up. "The traitor has been spotted in the warehouse! Hurry up, get armed and go there immediately!"

The soldiers bought it immediately, quickly getting their weapons and rushing off to the warehouse. In less than ten minutes the entire Templar Platoon was inside the warehouse, searching for the 'traitor'.

In the midst of all this, Nikolai planted the explosives, which was eight sticks of dynamite tied together, in between two stacks of poison gas cylinders. Nikolai had set the fuse so that it would take about thirty seconds for the dynamite to go off once the fuse was ignited.

Setting off the fuse, Nikolai and Darko fled the scene. About thirty seconds later, about two streets away from the warehouse, the sticks of dynamite exploded. It caused a chain reaction and eventually all the poison gas cylinders in the warehouse went off.

Many of the Templar Platoon were killed by the poison gas, and the remaining were injured by it. By the time the German soldiers realised Darko and Nikolai were no where to be found, they were already on the road back to Bucharest.


	12. Chapter 12

Returning to Bucharest about a week later, Darko and Nikolai discovered that on the same day when they had arrived in Roeselare, an ocean liner known as the RMS Luisitania, leading to the United States of America joining the Great War.

"Those Germans must be not in the right mind," Gustav commented. "If they hadn't attacked that damn civilian ship the Americans wouldn't have joined the war. But now with the United States in the war, the tide of battle may be changing. The Germans may have just dug their own grave."

"Indeed, they may have done so," Nikolai agreed. "Master, the job is done, though I'm sure you have heard of it."

Gustav nodded. Aleksandar said, "It's pretty much the talk of the town right now. An entire warehouse of poison gas cylinders being destroyed, with so many soldiers inside the warehouse at the same time, was unheard of, until now. Undoubtedly the Germans are pissed off, but they can't do anything about it since they have no leads."

"Not for long, perhaps," Gustav said. "Word that it was the Assassins' doing will soon spread among the Templars, and they might assist the German Empire in hunting down the culprits, which are you two."

Darko asked, "Is there anything else we have to do?"

"Ah, yes," Gustav replied. "A few of the Assassin Brotherhoods across the globe require help. Since there isn't much to be done here in Romania, I'm going to send all three of you to different Brotherhoods to help out."

Together, Darko and Nikolai travelled northwest, parting ways when they arrived in France, where Nikolai had been assigned to go. Darko then continued towards Britain, which was his destination.

Arriving in England, Darko made his way for the town of Bournemouth, to search for Frederick Abberline, former Chief Inspector for the Metropolitan Police and an ally of the Assassins. He was well-known for his investigation of the Jack the Ripper murders decades ago.

It was not difficult to find Frederick's address, since he was sort of a well-known person. Knocking on the door of Frederick's house, Darko waited patiently until someone answered the door.

Roughly half a minute after knocking, an old man with a cane answered the door. "What is it?" he asked grumpily.

Taking a bow, Darko said, "I am looking for Mister Frederick Abberline."

"That's me. Why would you be looking for me?"

"I am Darko Kerzhakov," Darko introduced himself. "A member of the Assassin Brotherhood. I'm honoured to meet you, Mister Abberline."

Frederick invited Darko into the house. "Tell me more about yourself, Darko."

"Well, I came here all the way from Romania to help out the English Brotherhood, under orders from a Master Assassin," Darko told him. "By the way, have you heard of the killing of General Erich Albert?"

"Yes, I have," Frederick answered. "That high-ranking Templar was killed by one of the Assassins here, posing as a medic."

"Could you tell me more about him, Mister Abberline?"

Taking a train from Bournemouth Central, Darko arrived in the town of Crawley about three hours later. The town of Crawley, also the hometown of the renowned Assassin siblings Jacob and Evie Frye, was where the British 'medic' who had killed Erich Albert lived.

Darko knocked on the door of the man's house, which was a unit in one of the apartment buildings in Crawley. Opening the door, the Assassin's shoulders jerked, stunned to see Darko. It seemed like the 'medic' still remembered him.

"Come in, come in!" the man said warmly. "Make yourself at home, brother!"

Sitting in the living room, the man poured Darko a cup of tea. "How the hell did you find me? Last we met was in Wipers last year, when I stole your kill."

"Wipers?" Darko was puzzled.

The man chuckled. "Yeah, Wipers. That's the nickname we Tommys call the region of Ypres. So how did you find me?"

"I was assigned here to help out the English Brotherhood. Once I arrived in the country I made my way to Bournemouth."

At that moment Darko was politely interrupted by the man. "Bournemouth, huh? So you went to look for Frederick Abberline, am I correct? And he told you where I was."

"Pretty much," Darko shrugged. "So, what's your name, good sir?"

"My name's Jules Fisher, grandnephew of the former First Sea Lord, John Fisher," he introduced himself.

Suddenly, a bullet whizzed past Darko and Jules, coming within millimetres of them.

Turning around, Darko saw a man equipped with a M1911 pistol, the one who had fired the bullet. Raising his hand slightly Darko fired a Phantom Blade. The man fell, his shirt rapidly becoming stained crimson red.

Jules extended his hand at Darko, grabbing on his robes and pulling the Serbian into the house. Slamming the door and locking it, Jules said, "There may not be only one attacker. Go to the attic and keep the perimeter clear. I need to make a call or two."

In the attic, Darko kept watch through the two windows at each end of the attic, ensuring that no one got too close to house. Two more attackers showed up, only to be shot dead by Darko.

Soon Jules rushed up to the attic and told Darko, "Come with me."

He led Darko to the garage of the house, where a Ford Model T was parked. "That's yours?" Darko asked.

Nodding, Jules gestured for him to get in. "Let's get the hell out of here."


	13. Chapter 13

Jules drove like a madman, speeding down the streets of Crawley as if he was fleeing from a killer, which was not far from the truth. While he drove, Darko held on firmly to the side of the car, his face pale.

Fortunately the drive lasted for less than five minutes. Jules turned the Ford Model T into an alleyway on the other side of Crawley, stopping just outside a building with a door facing the alleyway. Getting out of the two-door coupe, Jules knocked on the door.

Almost immediately the door swung open, and the two Assassins rushed into the building. Once the door was shut and locked, Darko felt relatively safe and scanned the building. There were several men in trench coats, armed with pistols.

Grinning at Darko, Jules said, "Allow me to fully introduce myself, Darko. I'm Jules Fisher, grandnephew of John Fisher, as well as the agent-in-charge of all MO5 agents in Sussex."

"MO5?" Darko had never heard the name before.

Jules elaborated, "We're a subsection of the War Office department of the government, known as the Directorate of Military Operations, section 5. MO5 was formerly known as the Home Section of the Secret Service Bureau."

As if on cue, the agents rolled back the sleeves of their trench coats, to reveal Hidden Blades which had been specially concealed inside. Jules added, "All MO5 agents in Sussex are either Assassins or Assassin allies."

"So these were the people you made 'a call or two' to?"

"You got that right," Jules replied.

Darko addressed the MO5 agents, "It is pleasing to meet family so far away from home."

Jules laughed at the statement. "You make it seem like you're over fifty years old! By the looks of you, I guess that you're barely more than twenty!"

"Nineteen," Darko said with a smile, before continuing, "I am Darko Kerzhakov, a Serbian originally from Sarajevo. The Assassin I serve is Master Assassin Gustav de Monaco."

The agents in the room acknowledged it with a polite bow. Jules explained, "You have gained reputation for your deeds in the Second Battle of Ypres. After all, you and your brother were the ones who destroyed the Templar Platoon, didn't you? Oh, and also we've heard that you helped to free Talia bin Rahmat, the Mentor of the Turkish Asassins."

"I guess so," Darko shrugged his shoulders.

"We require your help, Darko. A German spy ring known as the Ducain Spy Ring is known to have been recently established in Sussex, and it seems like they have an English Templar as their informant. But we don't know exactly who the Templar is, and we can't investigate either due to all the red tape."

"Let me guess. I'm not a member of MO5 so the red tape crap doesn't affect me, so you want me to help you guys eradicate the Ducain Spy Ring."

"More or less," Jules smiled sheepishly. "Let me tell you more about the Ducain Spy Ring. It was founded by Mark Ducain, a man with not much known about him. However, we do know that he's a Master Templar. Also, there's a small Ducain Spy Ring base here in Crawley, which is currently under our surveillance, though we haven't been able to attack it yet."

Darko said, "Well, Jules, what are we waiting for? Lead me to the base and I'll start tearing it apart."

Jules drove Darko to the street the base was located on with his Ford Model T. Dropping Darko off a few buildings away, Jules said, "Expect resistance, how heavy I have no idea. Good luck, Darko."

Making his way to the base, Darko pounded on the door. Eventually the door was opened by one of the spies, dressed in civilian attire. "May I help you?" he asked rather impatiently.

"Of course you could," Darko said, releasing his Hidden Blade. Just as his attention shifted over to the mysterious blade at the man's wrist, Darko thrust it into the spy's chest.

Tossing the body a short distance away, Darko strode into the building and shut the door behind him.

Entering the living room quietly, Darko saw a trio of men playing cards, too engrossed to notice him. Producing a smoke bomb, which had been given to him by Jules and was as large as a baseball, Darko pulled the pin of the smoke bomb and hurled it onto the table the three men were playing cards on.

The smoke bomb had been modified so that it would not make much sound when detonated. Soon smoke filled the room, causing the three men to cough and be confused. Darko's Hidden Blade sprung, and he thrust it into the first spy. As he toppled, Darko took a step forward and slashed the second man across his chest.

As the smoke cleared, Darko cornered the last spy, holding him at knifepoint with the Hidden Blade. "How many more of you lads are in this building?"

"Three more," the spy replied with an obvious hint of fear in his voice. "I hope they kill you, you fool."

"Let them try," Darko said before he slit the spy's throat. "Rest in peace."

Having heard sounds coming from the living room, the three remaining spies came to investigate. Darko heard their footsteps approaching, and smiled. The job of searching for them did not have to be done after all.

While he waited for the spies to arrive, Darko sat on one of the chairs, making himself comfortable. The moment the spies showed up, Darko drew his pistol and shot two of the spies dead.

Seeing his two comrades die and noticing that he was now alone, the spy's bravado vanished. He was so terrified that he did not even attempt to flee. The spy just stood there, cowering in fear.

Getting up from the chair, Darko walked calmly over to the spy. "I mean no harm, spy. Tell me more about the Ducain Spy Ring, and you will be spared."

"I…I don't know!" Even though terrified, the spy remained loyal to the Spy Ring.

Darko sighed. "I'm losing my patience here, spy. Do you really want to continue being loyal to such filthy scum?"

"You know Frederick Abberline, that former Chief Inspector? Master Ducain and his men have been plotting his death," the spy revealed. "They've even established a small base in Bournemouth, where he lives! Every word of this is true, I swear!"

"When will the plot be carried out?" Darko asked. He was absolutely astonished but he was trying his best to hide it.

"I don't know!"

"Well then, spy. I will spare your life, as I have promised. But I have a task for you. Return to Mark Ducain and tell him the Assassins are coming for them. No matter how many spies he sends against us, his death will still come."


	14. Chapter 14

Rushing back to the MO5 headquarters in Crawley, Darko reported to Jules Fisher on what he had gathered from the Ducain Spy Ring base.

"What?" Jules was equally stunned as Darko had been. "Frederick has become the target of an assassination plot masterminded by Mark Ducain himself? Has my hearing deteriorated?"

"No, your hearing has not deteriorated, Mister Fisher," Darko said. "I need to make my way to Bournemouth at once. Mister Abberline is in danger."

Jules laughed. "Frederick Abberline is not the frail old man you think he is, Darko. He has been one of our staunch allies for decades now. Naturally he has picked up some of the Assassins' tricks. Why don't you make your way back to his house in Bournemouth, and see for yourself?"

In Bournemouth, Darko met up again with Frederick. "Mister Abberline, you have been targeted by the Ducain Spy Ring, the soon-to-be victim of an assassination plot masterminded by Mark Ducain himself."

"I'll be damned," Frederick said with a laugh, as if he had been the target of many assassination plots already. "Though it's been a while since the last attempt, I can certainly try to defend myself again."

Darko was surprised at his reaction. "Pardon my rudeness, Mister Abberline. But you don't seem fazed at all by the news."

"Of course I'm not," Frederick replied. "After all, I was once a Chief Inspector. If I let such matters disturb me, I would have died of stress and worry long ago! Certainly, I'm much older than when I was Chief Inspector, but my skills and mentality still remain."

"Jules told me that you have certain tricks which you could use to combat the assassination plot. Perhaps you can show me some of those?"

"Very well, then. I will show you a live demonstration when the plot is actually carried out. In the meantime, why don't you stay in my house?"

"That would be wonderful. A thousand thanks, Mister Abberline," Darko said with a polite bow.

Days later, on the 28th of May, the assassination plot was carried out. As Frederick and Darko were at home, processing several documents which had been intercepted by Assassins, they heard carriages arriving outside.

Through the metal gates on the perimeter of the house, Darko saw two large horse-drawn wagons outside, each requiring two horses to pull along. On each wagon were four men, all in three-piece suits and bowler hats. Darko also saw an emblem sown to the breast pocket of their suits.

Hurrying back into the house, Darko told Frederick, "Mister Abberline, there're ten men outside! All wearing suits and hats, with some kind of emblem on their breast pockets. I think it was a blue-coloured rose or something."

"Balls," Frederick muttered. "That would be the Bournemouth Blueroses, the largest gang here in town. For a while now I've had suspicions about them having ties to the Templars. Appears that I could be right after all."

"Verification can be done later, Mister Abberline. Right now our focus is to get those buggers away from your property," Darko said as he flicked his wrist, springing his Hidden Blade.

Frederick nodded in agreement. "I suppose you have a point. However, before you go out there slaughtering the attackers, why don't you come with me? I have a better idea."

Gesturing for Darko to follow him, Frederick went into the study in the house. Moving the study table to one side with Darko's help, Frederick tapped around the area of the wall behind the table, until he found a part that was hollow. At the hollow area of the wall, Frederick gently pushed it. A small portion of the wall swung open, revealing a small hidden compartment. Inside the compartment there was a single object – a lever on the wall. Frederick proceeded to pull the lever.

Heading back outside, Darko saw three of the gangsters on the ground, passed out. Frederick grinned at the sight. "What I just did was turn on an electric current that passes through the metal gates. Since metal is a good conductor of heat, any who touches them with his or her bare hands will suffer. But now they'll just attempt to scale the wall, which shouldn't be difficult for those gangsters."

Running over to the wall, Darko climbed on top of it. He looked down and saw a few gangsters climbing. He kicked the nearest one in the head, causing him to fall off.

Seeing the man on the wall, the gangsters produced pistols. But before they could even take aim, Darko drew his pistol and shot three of the gangsters dead.

The remaining five gangsters, shocked at what Darko had just done, tried to retreat. However, they were forced to fight back when Darko jumped off the wall, landing in front of the squad of gangsters.

As they were still drawing their daggers, Darko charged at the nearest gangster, springing his Hidden Blade as he did so. Tackling the man onto the ground, Darko pierced his heart.

Getting up from the ground, Darko unsheathed his dagger and skilfully parried a blow from the last gangster, before slashing his throat.

While Darko was cleaning his weapons, a carriage arrived, which was relatively well-decorated. Out of the carriage came two men, one with a cane and a top hat and the other having a muscular build.

Seeing the man, Frederick rushed over to an area of the low wall near the gate and disabled the electric current that was passing through the metal gates. With the gate safe to touch, Frederick opened the gates and stood beside Darko.

"Duxton O'Parinor, Anglo-Frenchman and the leader of the Bournemouth Blueroses. Never knew you would be affiliated with the Templars. You could've been of help to the Assassin Order, you know?"

The man whom Frederick had called Duxton retorted calmly, "Many things in life are unexpected. I also never knew you, at this age, could survive an attack by eight of my men. I suppose that's because you have a fellow Assassin with you. Things would change if he wasn't around, I hope you know that, Frederick Abberline."

Immediately Darko and Frederick's hands reached for their weapons. "So you mean to kill him right now, in broad daylight? There will be no killing in the name of this old man. If you wish to do so you must get through me first," Frederick said defensively.

"Relax, Abberline," Duxton said with a small gesture. "I may be a Templar, but I'm not a foolish one. I come only to see the aftermath of this assassination plot, but it seems like it has backfired. Now, if you gentlemen would allow me, I would take my leave now."

Darko lunged at Duxton, wanting to end everything once and for all, but Frederick stopped Darko with a hand to his chest. "Not now, Darko. We can continue this next time."


	15. Chapter 15

"So now we have both the Ducain Spy Ring and the Bournemouth Blueroses to deal with, huh?" Jules Fisher, MO5 agent and Assassin, said. "This is really a lot on our hands right now."

"Then we'll need to move quickly," Frederick said. "Luckily we have Darko here, who's the best Assassin from foreign lands we've seen in a while."

Jules nodded in agreement. "At first I wanted to take out the Ducain Spy Ring slowly and thoroughly, working our way up. Seems like we don't have the luxury for that anymore. So right now, Darko, I'll assign you as well as my men to take out several key members of the Ducain Spy Ring. Screw the red tape, if my men do it quietly and well the higher-ups will never know it was our doing."

"Darko, make your way to Waterloo Antiques, located here in Crawley," Jules requested. "The owner, a Frenchman, is a member of the Ducain Spy Ring. Waterloo Antiques is also one of the main sources of income for the Spy Ring, and the antiques sold in the shop are merely fakes."

Entering Waterloo Antiques, Darko did not waste time. He fired a Phantom Blade into the owner of the shop, at the area in between the two collarbones. As he retrieved the blade from the owner's dying body, Darko told him, "For being part of the Ducain Spy Ring, you must die. Rest in peace."

The next morning, Darko made his way to the marketplace of Crawley, where his next target was. The man, a market stall owner named Guy, was also a member of the Ducain Spy Ring, and he was one of the main information gatherers of the ring.

Seeing the robed man near, Guy panicked, assuming him an Assassin, which was correct. Guy had dreams to become a Templar, instead of merely a Templar associate, and he did not want his dreams to be squashed so abruptly.

Guy realised that his assumptions were correct when he found the robed man chasing after him. "Please, spare me!" he yelled, hoping that the Assassin would listen to his pleas, even though he knew it was unlikely.

Summoning extra strength, Darko boosted himself forward, closing the short distance between him and Guy. Finally close enough, Darko pounced on him, pinning him onto the ground.

"Please, don't kill me!" pleaded Guy, as Darko drew his dagger.

"If you weren't a member of the Ducain Spy Ring, I wouldn't," Darko said, before killing the man.

Jules applauded Darko for his work. "While you were out at work killing the two targets, I sent my men to eliminate lesser but still important members of the Ducain Spy Ring around Sussex. I can't believe it, in two days we have done so much damage to those fools. Perhaps by the end of the week we'll be able to end the Ducain Spy Ring once and for all."

His estimations had been correct. Enough of key members of the Ducain Spy Ring had been eliminated, and sufficient information had been gathered for Mark Ducain's location to be discovered.

"Mark Ducain is currently hiding out in a tavern in Stepney, London. Pretty smart, that lad. Stepney holds a good portion of the lower-class of London, and it wouldn't be difficult for Mark to blend in with the masses. Unfortunately that wit isn't enough to save himself. You know what to do, Darko. Good luck."

Arriving in Stepney at about eleven in the night of the 30th of May, Darko felt the ground shake. Looking up, he saw bombs dropping out of the sky. Unluckily for him, Darko had arrived just at the beginning of the first air raid over London.

Debris from buildings damaged by incendiaries began falling everywhere. Darko had to manage avoid being hit by the debris as well as being tramped over by the crowd, which was not as many in the day but still a fair number.

While he was escaping, an old man caught Darko's attention. He appeared to be in his late sixties, using a cane to aid his walking, and his hair and beard was snow-white. Darko recognised him as Alexander Graham Bell, the inventor of the telephone, and an Assassin ally.

"Are you alright?" Darko asked, rushing up to Alexander, who was like many others, struggling to avoid getting hit by bombs.

Alexander looked up at Darko and nodded. "I should be alright, thank you very much. But if you would, could you please help me? An old man can't possibly fend against an entire crowd of disarrayed civilians."  
"Where to, Mister Bell?" Darko queried as he placed Alexander's free hand over his shoulder.

He was slightly surprised Darko knew who he was. "I need to get to Brown's Hotel in Mayfair, on Albemarle Street."

The two of them travelled roughly eight kilometres, the travelling getting visibly easier once they left the district of Stepney, which by then had been damaged by the incendiaries.

Entering the Brown's Hotel in Mayfair, Darko brought Alexander up to a receptionist. Alexander had been injured, having been hit in the arm by glass which had shattered because of the explosion of an incendiary.

"Where's Mister Bell's room?" Darko demanded. "And get some ethanol swabs and bandages, please!"

"Mister Bell's room is in Room 50," the receptionist answered coolly, as if that sort of thing happened on a near-daily basis.

Soon the ethanol swabs were delivered to Mister Bell's room. Darko hastily disinfected Alexander's arm wounds with the ethanol, before bandaging the arm. "Thank you very much, lad."

"Allow me to introduce myself, Mister Bell," Darko said. "I am Darko Kerzhakov, a member of the Assassin Order. I know you're considered an ally to us Assassins. I have a request for you, Mister Bell."

Alexander was surprised. "A request, Darko? Let's hear it then! If it's within my power I'll do my best."

"I need to find a certain man known as Mark Ducain, a Templar that was supposed to be staying in a tavern in Stepney. That was why I was there, before the bombs fell."

He exhaled loudly. "I'll be damned. He's a German, isn't he? Thirties, no beard and just a little moustache."

"You know him?"

Alexander nodded solemnly. "He told me he was a businessman from Berlin, keen to invest in the Bell Telephone Company. Tell you what, whatever you wish to tell me, why don't you meet me tomorrow, the 1st of June, in the mid-afternoon at the tea room of this hotel?"

"Very well, Mister Bell," Darko said as he nodded. "I'll be there."


	16. Chapter 16

The next day, Darko met with Alexander Graham Bell at the tea room of Brown's Hotel, aptly named Brown's English Tea Room.

"Do try some of the tea here!" Alexander pointed at the teakettle and teacups in the middle of the table. "I myself am not really obsessed with tea, but the tea served here is rather delicious!"

Darko smiled as he took a teacup and poured some tea, trying it. To him all tea tasted the same, but Darko just nodded. "Pretty ordinary to me."

Alexander chuckled. "Why don't we continue our conversation from the previous night? If I remember correctly you were about to tell me more about Mark Ducain."

"Yes, indeed. Mark Ducain is the leader of the Ducain Spy Ring, a spy ring based in Sussex. As I probably said before, he was supposed to be staying at a tavern in Stepney."

"In return for your help, Darko. I have set up an opportunity for you to assassinate the man," Alexander revealed. "I told him to meet me at Charing Cross railway station today at sunset. It'll be a little difficult to kill Mark there, I presume, but I'm certain that an Assassin like you will be able to do it."

"Thank you for your help, Mister Bell," Darko said as he stood up, offering a hand for Alexander to shake.

He took the hand and shook it. "Delighted to have made your acquaintance."

Charing Cross railway station at sunset was rather crowded. Civilians were rushing to get home from work. Darko scanned the crowd, trying to find Mark.

Mark was dressed in a trench coat and a top hat, along with a pair of fake glasses to help hide his identity. Darko saw him almost immediately. In addition, there were two of Mark's guards standing nearby, dressed in civilian attire and acting as strangers.

Walking up to the first guard, Darko 'accidentally' knocked into him. With his palm on the man's stomach, Darko released his Hidden Blade, letting it penetrate into his stomach.

Pulling the Hidden Blade out, Darko quickly kept it again, ensuring that no one saw his Hidden Blade. Bowing his head and pretending to apologise, Darko hurried off.

Sneaking up on the second guard, who had noticed his comrade lying on the floor and was on his way to investigate, Darko stabbed the man in the back.

Noticing his two guards on the floor, Mark knew at once that something was amiss. He began to walk briskly in the opposite direction of his men.

Leaving Charing Cross station alive, Mark scanned the vicinity to find no one suspicious. He finally stopped walking and calmed himself down with deep breaths.

"Are you alright, sir?" a man came up to Mark. Mark looked at the man. He was Eastern European, and appeared to be in his twenties.

Mark nodded. "Thank you for your concern, good sir. I'm just a little out of breath, otherwise I'm all fine."

"That's sad to hear," the Eastern European, who was Darko, said. "But luckily I can fix that."

Unholstering his pistol, Darko let loose a shot at Mark. Mark ducked quickly and managed to dodge the bullet. Darko fired a second bullet, which connected and hit Mark in his leg.

Despite the pain in his leg, Mark tried to escape from the attacker, limping away. Seeing a patrol of two policemen at the end of the street, Mark limped his way there, trying to get their attention at the same time.

"Bobbies!" Mark shouted. "Someone's trying to kill me! For the love of god please help!"

Before the policemen noticed Mark, Darko closed the distance between him and Mark and ended the Templar's life with a swift slash to the neck. As the civilians ran for their lives, Darko kept his weapon and fled the scene in the same general direction of the civilians, blending in with them.

Returning to Crawley, Jules Fisher congratulated Darko for his work. "Wonderful, now with the Ducain Spy Ring mostly destroyed we can move on to the Bournemouth Blueroses. Gangsters patrol the town to keep their streets 'safe' and most businesses are forced to pay them protection fees."

"Sounds like a terrible place to live in," Darko remarked. "Tell me what I need to do, Jules."


	17. Chapter 17

Darko and Jules Fisher, now back in Bournemouth, stood in front of a building that was located near the pier. The building was owned and used by the Bournemouth Blueroses to keep a watch on who came in and out of Bournemouth via sea.

"Alright, Darko," Jules said as he produced several devices, each the size of a tennis ball. "Be careful with these. They are smaller versions of the German firebombs, filled with kerosene and oil. These handheld bombs were modified so that the kerosene and oil would ignite upon detonation, or at least theoretically. My men and I have never tried one of these before."

Taking some of the small bombs, Darko said, "Let's hope it actually works."

The small bombs worked surprisingly well, so well that they only had to use half their supply of firebombs. By then the entire building was ablaze.

Five Bournemouth Blueroses saw Darko and Jules outside the building, and immediately deduced that they were the culprits. Pulling out daggers, the gangsters formed a circle around the two Assassins.

"You take the two on the left, I'll take the two on the right. We'll take the middle one together," Jules whispered.

Running up to the nearest Bournemouth Bluerose, Darko stabbed him with his Hidden Blade. Throwing the body to the ground at his side, Darko drew his dagger, and with careful aiming hurled it at the second gangster. Darko walked up to the second gangster and retrieved his dagger from the dead body.

Jules finished off the fourth Bournemouth Bluerose about the same time as Darko did. Together the two of them faced off against the last gangster, who seemed to have been the leader of the five-man squad of Bournemouth Blueroses.

Realising that he was the only gangster left, he tried to make a run for it. However, Darko quickly caught up with him and tackled the man to the ground.

"Please, don't kill me!" the man's bravery had completely vanished. "I'll tell you whatever you want to know!"

Jules told the man, "Where do the Blueroses keep their money?"

The man was hesitant to tell them, and that earned him a brutal kick to the face from Darko. "What are you waiting for?"

"Café de Bournemouth! That's where most of our money is kept!" the man broke down and gave in. "I swear it's true! I'm not lying!"

Pulling the man up, Darko decapitated the man with his Hidden Blade. Showing the man's head up high to the crowd that had recently gathered to see all the commotion, Darko announced, "The Bournemouth Blueroses have no place in today's society. Fear no more, citizens of Bournemouth! We are here to vanquish those thugs!"

With one of their buildings burning in the vicinity and the dead bodies on the ground, the crowd believed Darko. They cheered and roared in approval.

"What the hell is going on over here?" three gangsters forced their way out of the crowd, only to gasp at the sight of five of their comrades dead.

One of the gangsters drew his pistol. "You will pay for your insolence, fools!"

In a flick, Darko fired his Phantom Blade at the gangster, killing him before he could pull the trigger. With the bravest of the three gangsters dead, the remaining two gangsters fled the scene.

A few hours later, after getting their needed rest, Darko and Jules met opposite the Café de Bournemouth, a French-themed eatery popular to both locals and foreigners. The café was now closed, even though it should be open at that time of the day, which made the two Assassins suspicious.

"They probably guess we're coming for them," Darko muttered.

Jules agreed. "Let's check the alleyways around the café."

Bournemouth Blueroses were patrolling the alleyways around the Café de Bournemouth. A two-man patrol, upon seeing Darko and Jules, warned the two Assassins, "You know what curiosity did to the cat, alright? Leave now, or we'll help you to do that."

Snick. Jules' Hidden Blade sprung, and he charged at the gangsters. Slashing the first gangster's throat, Jules ducked in time to dodge a swipe from the second Bluerose's dagger. Without missing a beat, Jules got up from his duck and kicked the gangster hard in the chest before ending the man's life.

"That was quick," Darko commended. "Remind me never to awaken your bad side."

Jules chuckled. "Sure."

In the next few minutes, Darko and Jules took out all the Bournemouth Blueroses patrols in the alleyways around Café de Bournemouth. Once the thugs were dead, the two of them made their way into the building through an open window on the second floor.

The Café was rather empty. Darko and Jules eavesdropped on a conversation between Duxton O'Parinor himself and several other high-ranking gangsters.

"We're being threatened, by mere men?" a high-ranking gangster repeated in disbelief. "That's why the Café de Bournemouth, one of our most prominent businesses and our largest treasury, is on lockdown? This is utter bullshit!"

Duxton tried to calm him down. "These men are not 'mere men'. They are trained killers, prepared to do anything to bring their targets down. I'm sure you've heard that one of our buildings, the one by the pier, was set ablaze earlier today? That was committed by those 'mere men' you speak of."

The other high-ranking gangsters in the room nodded, realising that the situation at hand was more dire than they thought. "How do you propose we get rid of the threat?"

At that moment the door flung open and Darko and Jules walked into the room. "Your threat has arrived," Darko said, gesturing to the two dead men that were supposed to guard the room.

Before any of the men could react, Jules shut and locked the door. To set an example Jules pulled out a pistol and shot a high-ranking Bournemouth Bluerose dead.

"You Assassins," Duxton snarled. "Killing me won't make a difference in the spider web us Templars have weaved painstakingly."

"Oh shut up," Jules demanded, shooting a second Bluerose in the process. "There's a limit of how many Blueroses I can kill in this room before it becomes your turn."

Duxton sighed. "What do you want? There must be something you want, if not I'd be dead already."

"The names of every Templar you know of in Great Britain," Jules told him.

"As well as in Romania and the countries around it," added Darko.

Making his way to one of the cabinets, Duxton produced a slip of paper and handed it to Jules. "As for Templars around Romania, I only know of one. He's a Master Templar, and a Comandor in the Romanian Navy. I'm only telling you his name because I find him a piece of trash. He is Comandor Gavril Eustantus."

"Thank you for your help," Darko said, before pulling out his own pistol and killing every Bournemouth Bluerose in the room.

Once they made sure the gangsters were dead, the two Assassins left through a window inside the room.


	18. Chapter 18

Back in Crawley, Darko prepared to part ways with Frederick Abberline and Jules Fisher. But before he left, Frederick had a surprise for him, in the name of Lydia Frye and Sam Crowder, an Assassin couple.

"You are Darko Kerzhakov, am I correct?" Sam asked as he shook Darko's hand.

"That is correct," Darko replied. "And if I am not mistaken you are Sam Crowder, and your wife here is Lydia Frye."

Lydia said, "My husband and I have heard of your noble deeds. We cannot thank you enough for helping us to take down the Ducain Spy Ring and the Bournemouth Blueroses. Though there'll still be some loose ends to tie up regarding the two organisations, at least most of them are down and powerless."

"All of us are Assassins. Your enemy is mine, and mine is yours," Darko said. "If you would excuse me, I have to take my leave. My master in Romania awaits my return."

"Gustav de Monaco, isn't he?" Sam said with a grin, pulling a letter out of his robes. The letter had a seal in the form of the Assassin insignia on it. "Pass this letter to him upon your return to Romania."

As Darko kept the letter, he queried, "If I may ask, what are the contents of this letter?"

"The British Assassin Brotherhood has made a unanimous decision to promote you to the rank of Master Assassin. However, it needs to be approved by Gustav, since you are under his charge," Lydia told him.

Returning to Bucharest, Darko found that his elder brother, Nikolai, had made his way back from France just a few days before Darko. Darko passed the letter Sam Crowder had given him to Gustav de Monaco.

"A letter from the British Assassins?" Gustav asked as he took the letter.

"Indeed, Master," Darko said. "Do read it."

Once he had read the letter, Gustav said, "I will allow it. If you would excuse me, I have a letter to write to the British Assassins."

"What's the letter about, Darko?" Aleksandar asked him.

Darko told the two Assassins the contents of the letter, as well as his experiences in England.

"Sounds like a lot you've done," Nikolai commented. "It's only understandable that they want to promote you to Master Assassin. Congratulations, brother."

Darko nodded. Then he remembered the name Duxton had told him. "Aleksandar, Nikolai, have you heard of a man by the name of Gavril Eustantus? He's supposed to be a Comandor in the Romanian Navy."

Nikolai did not know anything, but Aleksandar did. "Why he's the talk of the town right now! He's involved in some scandal. If I remember correctly, Comandor Eustantus purchased some weapons from the Germans, angering the high-ups in the Romanian Armed Forces. They were angered because Romania's supposed to be a neutral country, and buying arms from a non-neutral country could end up to be a political shitstorm."

"I like the way you put it, Aleksandar. 'Political shitstorm', that's rather creative," Darko commended with a laugh. "Anyway, I was told that Comandor Eustantus is a Templar, a Master Templar at that."

"Is that so? Well then, I'll tell Gustav about this, and we'll see if it's true."

Days later, it was confirmed that Gavril Eustantus was a Master Templar. In the meantime Gustav had also gathered some information about the man.

"It appears that it is highly unlikely that Comandor Eustantus will be sentenced for his crimes," Gustav told the Assassins. "That is because the Master Templar maintains some contacts that wield influence in Romanian society."

"But if the contacts were to be threatened, there will be no more influence for the Comandor to wield," Aleksandar said.

Nikolai continued, "And there'll be nothing left to stop him from being sentenced."

Darko grinned. "Tell me some of Comandor Eustantus' contacts."

"Ernest Vorei, owner of the Vorei Omnibus Company. Doctor Li, a doctor specialising in eastern medical treatments. Gregory Ivanovich, a Russian priest."

"How am I to stop them from supporting Gavril?"

Gustav replied, "You could try threatening their businesses. Perhaps blow up an omnibus or two owned by Ernest, and beat up a client of Doctor Li right in front of him."


	19. Chapter 19

From the newspapers, Darko learned that a new model of omnibus was to enter the service of the Vorei Omnibus Company, and Ernest Vorei would be present at the launch. "Perfect opportunity," Darko mumbled.

At the event, Darko learned that Ernest would be taking a ride on an omnibus of the new model. Shortly before the event commenced, Darko found the driver of the omnibus and knocked him out, before donning his uniform.

The event went smoothly for the first few minutes, with Darko driving the omnibus around normally, until he spurred the two horses. The two horses sped up from a walk to a moderate canter.

"What are you doing?" a confused yet exasperated Ernest asked rhetorically. "Stop this at once!"

Darko rammed the side of the omnibus into a building, causing Ernest, the only occupant of the bus, to move suddenly to one side. "I will stop when you give me your promise to stop supporting Comandor Gavril Eustantus," Darko told him.

"That will not happen!" Ernest shot back. "Comandor Eustantus is one of my most trusted business partners! Without his money I would have never set up this company."

Ramming the carriage's side once more, Darko said, "Are you sure? You could take a dip in the Dambovita if you still want to consider!"

"Please, stop this madness! I'll stop supporting Comandor Eustantus! I'll even cut off all ties with him!" Ernest promised.

Satisfied, Darko stopped the damaged omnibus at the side of the road. Opening the door to the omnibus, Darko watched as Ernest Vorei stumbled out of the vehicle, slightly bruised and confused.

As Ernest walked by, Darko drew his pistol for him to see. "This will be the last thing you see should you not keep to the promise you just made, Ernest Vorei. Remember that."

Disposing of the driver uniform, Darko made his way to the clinic where Doctor Li worked at, dressed in his Assassin robes. Entering the building, Darko walked up to the receptionist. "Where is Doctor Li?"

"Sorry, but do you have an appointment already scheduled with him?" the receptionist asked.

Unholstering his pistol, Darko pointed it at the receptionist. "Is this enough for an appointment?"

The receptionist stammered in reply, "Yes…yes sir. He is…is inside now."

"Wonderful," Darko said and shot the receptionist's leg.

Hearing the sound of gunfire, all the civilians in the building fled. Doctor Li left his room as well, wanting to see what was going on. "What's the rush, doctor?" Darko said with a cruel smile, with his pistol trained at his head.

"Wha…what do you want?" Doctor Li asked in accented English.

"Let's have a chat inside, shall we?" Darko gestured for Doctor Li to get into the room.

Seeing the doctor move so slowly, so cautiously, Darko knew he was planning something. True enough, Doctor Li slammed the door right in front of Darko and locked it.

Like such a small thing would stop Darko. Producing a lockpick, Darko worked at the door. Fifteen seconds later the lock was opened, and Darko walked into the room, closing the door behind him.

"That's not a very nice thing to do. Now, before I put a bullet in your head, stop working with and supporting Comandor Gavril Eustantus."

"Who?" Doctor Li was smarter than Ernest, feigning ignorance instead of the futile pleading. However, Darko could see through his lie rather easily.

"I will tell you once more. Stop working with and supporting Comandor Gavril Eustantus. Unless you want to end up worse than the receptionist outside, whom I shot in the leg."

Doctor Li gulped. "But Comandor Eustantus is friends with powerful men. Should I cut off my support from him he will send men to 'persuade' me to re-support him."

"No worries," Darko said as he left the room. "I will 'persuade' those men from disrupting your business. Have a nice day, Doctor Li."

Returning to Gustav, Darko told him, "It is done. Ernest Vorei and Doctor Li will not be supporting Comandor Eustantus ever again, I believe."

"No doubt," Gustav said with a smile. "After all, pretty much the whole of Bucharest has heard of what happened to poor Ernest today. Driving like a madman on an omnibus with only him inside, scaring the wits out of him."

Now it was Darko's turn to smile. "It was the only plan I could come up with at that time."

"With much of his support and influence gone, let's see how Comandor Gavril Eustantus will be sentenced."


	20. Chapter 20

A short period of peace came upon Darko and the other Assassins in Bucharest, until September 1915 arrived, when Darko received a letter.

Opening up the letter, Darko read it aloud for the others to hear, "Dear Darko, I pray to the gods that you're not dead before receiving this letter. We attempted to kill the English Templar who was informant to the now-destroyed Ducain Spy Ring, since we had discovered his whereabouts shortly after your departure. However, the assassination attempt failed and now the English Templar, a cheese merchant by the name of Gordon, is on his way to Bucharest, after overhearing a conversation about you."

"That isn't good," Nikolai commented.

Aleksandar nodded in agreement. "But how are we going to find this man before he finds us?"

"We don't," answered Darko. "Instead of going to him, we make him come to us."

Waiting for a week more to ensure that Gordon had arrived in Bucharest, the Assassins then proceeded to lure the Templar out. Each Assassin was posted to a popular tavern in Bucharest to attract attention and eventually lure Gordon out.

"Come round, come round!" Gustav shouted, his voice travelling across the room. "Hear the tale of a legendary hero by the name of Darko!"

The mention of the name 'Darko' caught the attention of an Englishman, who was slightly on the round side, with a prominent scar that ran down his left cheek. The Englishman walked up to Gustav and asked, "By any chance, is this 'hero' you speak of Darko Kerzhakov?"

"You have heard of his tale, no?" Gustav feigned surprise.

Avoiding his question, the Englishman said, "Let me hear the tale you have to offer."

"Darko Kerzhakov is a living legend, said to be a 'secret hero' to the citizens of Romania," Gustav begun spinning a tale. A few minutes later, Gustav ended his tale with, "He's still alive, and is rumoured to spend much of his time in the marketplace of this city, biding his time until he is required again."

Upon finishing the tale, Gustav was met with rounds of applause from most of the patrons of the tavern. The Englishman was clapping as well. "Wonderful tale, I feel. Thank you for telling me the tale, good sir."

Leaving the tavern as soon as possible, Gustav went to round up all the other Assassins, before informing them his encounter with an Englishman that was potentially Gordon.

"So now it seems like we'll be scouting the marketplace and confirming if the Englishman is indeed Gordon," Darko said. "That is at least, some progress."

They spotted the Englishman in the marketplace of Bucharest several days later. Gustav and Darko were in a 'borrowed' carriage, with Gustav disguised and as the driver and Darko the passenger.

Slowing down near the Englishman, Darko called out from the carriage, "Gordon, is that you?"

At once the Englishman turned his head around, trying to find out who had called him. That confirmed the assumption that he was Gordon. Darko waved at Gordon. "Quick, get in! Comandor Eustantus has been looking for you!"

"Gavril?" Gordon asked rhetorically as he got into the carriage. "May the Father of Understanding guide the man, I hear he's in a tough situation currently."

"Isn't that why you're here? To help your comrade out of his present situation?" Darko said as he gestured for Gustav to move off.

Gordon shook his head in reply. "I was sent here to hunt down a Serbian Assassin by the name of Darko Kerzhakov. Have you heard of him?"

"Yes, I have," Darko told him. "Comandor Eustantus, my master, is also searching for the man. After all, he was the bastard that eliminated much of his supporters."

"By the way, this carriage is well-furnished, I must say!" Gordon complimented. "And your carriage driver, I find him rather familiar."

Darko chuckled. "Many have said that before. I guess my driver has a common face. Driver, hurry up! Every second wasted is every second closer to Comandor Eustantus' sentencing!"

Instead of heading to Gavril's house, the carriage stopped in the middle of an alleyway, raising Gordon's suspicion. "What's going on? Why have we stopped in the middle of this shady place?"

Drawing his pistol, Darko pointed it at Gordon's head. "Allow me to introduce myself, Gordon. I am Darko Kerzhakov, the man you seek. Pleasure to have made your acquaintance, but now you must die."

A shot rang out and simultaneously Gordon's body went limp. Blood flowed out of his temple at a small, round hole which had appeared.

"Another one bites the dust," Gustav said as he hopped off the carriage. "Let's get back to base, shall we? That gunshot was rather loud."


	21. Chapter 21

One more week passed before Comandor Gavril Eustantus was finally sentenced for his crimes. He had been sentenced to lifetime imprisonment at Jilava, a fort that had turned into a prison located not more than an hour away from Bucharest. Civilians lined the streets where the prison convoy would travel through, wanting to see the deposed Comandor of the Romanian Navy.

The Assassins decided that they would follow the prison convoy secretly, so as to thwart any attempts to free the Master Templar.

Darko and Nikolai, the two Assassin siblings, watched from atop a building near the courthouse. Two soldiers of the Romanian Armed Forces stood outside the courthouse, while eight others guarded the prison convoy. Along the way soldiers were also posted to ensure that none of the civilians tried anything funny.

Soon Comandor Eustantus came out of the courthouse, chained and escorted by two more soldiers. The civilians booed as he was escorted into the prison carriage. Once the doors to the prison carriage were closed and locked, the convoy moved off.

A street or two away, Darko spotted a trio of armed men on adjacent rooftops, and tapped Nikolai on the shoulder. "Keep an eye on them, elder brother. They might be planning something bad."

As the convoy passed by below them, the trio skilfully hopped off the building, each of them landing on a carriage of the convoy. Without hesitation, Darko and Nikolai drew their pistols and opened fire at the trio of attackers.

Less than five seconds later, all three attackers were dead. The prison convoy was temporarily stopped while soldiers investigated. After a minute or two of investigation, and unable to find the vigilante(s) that had killed the attackers, the prison convoy continued its journey, albeit this time more vigilant.

As the prison convoy left Bucharest a few minutes later, a series of bullets were fired in near unison. Bullets flew in the air, some of them hitting the prison convoy guards. Three of the guards were hit and fell off their horses, dying almost right away.

Ten riflemen converged on the prison convoy, five coming in from the left and the other five from the right. The remaining soldiers fought back, and soon it escalated into a mini war.

In the midst of all the chaos and confusion, Darko and Nikolai entered the battle. Releasing his Hidden Blade, Darko thrust it into the nearest attacker. As he pulled the Hidden Blade out of the man's body, Darko saw one of the convoy guards battling an attacker, while a second attacker was attempting to sneak up on him.

Before Darko could fire his Phantom Blade, he saw a throwing knife slice through the air before embedding itself in the second attacker's neck. Looking in the direction where the throwing knife come from, he saw Nikolai, with a triumphant look on his face.

However, Darko had no time to compliment his brother for his knife-throwing skills, for he had been surrounded by three of the attackers. Darko noticed that the attackers' rifles had bayonets attached to them, though they were a little difficult to spot.

As an attacker brought his rifle down on Darko, intending to wound him with its bayonet, the attacker suddenly released his grip on the rifle, letting it drop to the ground. Moments later the man himself dropped to the ground, with a Phantom Blade in between his eyes.

Swinging around, Darko went low and rolled forward. His Hidden Blade buried itself in the second attacker's stomach, and the momentum caused him to fall onto the ground. Getting up, Darko finished the attacker off with a hard kick to his head.

There was a loud bang, which caused Darko to turn around instinctively. He saw the third attacker, with his rifle raised, and a bullet hole in his head. As the attacker collapsed Darko saw a convoy guard behind, with smoke drifting out of his rifle's muzzle.

"My thanks," Darko said.

The convoy guard said, "It is us who should be thanking you. Without your help these filthy men would have killed all of us."

His eyes sweeping around the battlefield, Darko saw that all the ten attackers were dead, or near death. "That man there, Comandor Eustantus, he's been a large pain in the ass for you lot, I presume?"

"Undoubtedly," replied the convoy guard. "I'm surprised at the number of people who want to free that man. If you would be so kind, could you two follow us for the remainder of the journey?"

"Certainly."

The journey went on smoothly, with no more rescue attempts by Gavril's allies. Once the prison convoy entered Jilava, Darko and Nikolai disappeared, making the convoy guards puzzled as to where and how they had vanished.

Back at the Assassin's Headquarters in Bucharest, Darko and Nikolai reported to Gustav, informing him that the mission had been successful. Gustav was pleased to hear the news, though he was a tad worried.

"Bars have rarely kept a Templar silent and powerless," Gustav said. "Comandor Eustantus might try to recruit men to the Templar cause in Jilava. We'll have to keep a watch on him, somehow."


	22. Chapter 22

Before long, the Assassins in Bucharest received word that there was Templar activity in Jilava, the prison where Comandor Gavril Eustantus, a Master Templar, was being held.

"This is no good," Darko commented. "We have to kill him before he influences more prisoners."

Gustav told him, "Could you do it for us, then? Infiltrate Jilava and assassinate the ex-soldier."

"Of course. I've already come up with a plan to do so."

By 'plan', Darko meant knocking a prison guard unconscious and donning his uniform, so as to disguise himself as a prison guard and move around the compound unnoticed.

Doing just that, Darko soon found himself in a prison guard uniform, and walking calmly and confidently into Jilava, as if he was not a hitman posing as a prison guard.

"Morning," Darko said as he walked into the prison break room. "Heard we have a new guy. What's his name?"

A prison guard replied, "He's not really new, but he's certainly the newest prisoner here in Jilava. Name's Gavril Eustantus, a former Comandor in the Romanian Navy. He's here serving a lifetime sentence, as a result of some big crime."

"Ah, yes. I've heard of him," Darko told the guard. "I hear there were attempts to rescue the prisoner while he was being transported here."

A second prison guard spoke, albeit a little softly, "A friend of mine, who was one of the guards in the prison convoy, told me this. He said that there were two hooded men who helped the guards fight off the people who tried to free Gavril Eustantus."

"Those hooded men must hate Gavril, then," Darko chuckled. "Where is he being kept anyway? I imagine such a high-profile prisoner like him is being kept somewhere more secure."

"You are correct," answered the first guard. "He's being kept in the high security section of this place."

"I see. Well then, thank you for taking the time to tell me more about this man."

Leaving the break room, Darko made his way to the high security section of Jilava, searching corridor after corridor until he found Comandor Eustantus.

Soon Darko found Comandor Eustantus in a bare cell, lying on a pillow and rattan mat. He seemed to be asleep, so Darko banged on his cell.

Comandor Eustantus woke up and saw the prison guard outside his cell, and his face immediately paled. It seemed that he recognised the Assassin.

"The Assassins bid you farewell." Those were the final words the Master Templar heard, before a Phantom Blade entered his throat.

Turning to leave, Darko found a pistol being aimed at him. Seeing the face of the man who was aiming the pistol at him, Darko was shocked. The man apparently was too. The reason was none other than because that the man Darko was looking at was Omar bin Rahmat, Master Assassin of the Turkish Assassins, dressed in a prison guard uniform as well.

"Never thought I'd see you again, especially in such circumstances. Why are you here, Omar?'

Omar smiled at Darko. "This is hardly the time to chat now, Darko. Let us get out of here quickly."

Outside Jilava, once Darko and Omar had re-dressed in their Assassin robes, they talked.

"I came here after hearing of Templar activity inside Jilava. I knew Comandor Gavril Eustantus was being kept here, since I was one of the two 'hooded men' in the stories that are presumably spreading like wildfire around the compound."

"Likewise, Darko," Omar said. "By the way, I've heard that you've been promoted to a Master Assassin. How was that achieved?"

Darko told him, "I was in Britain, helping the British Assassins eliminate some Templars over there. When I was about to return to Bucharest, Lydia Frye herself and her husband, Sam Crowder, both of them Assassins, presented me a letter. That letter was what helped me to become Master Assassin."

"Perhaps if I make my way to Britain to aid the English Assassins, I could get promoted to Mentor!" Omar joked. "Jokes aside, when you have the time, do come and visit my sister and I in Sofia, capital of the Kingdom of Bulgaria. Us Turkish Assassins have established a small base there, and since we Ottomans are on the same side as the Bulgarians in this war, they leave us alone most of the time."

In Bucharest, Darko told the other Assassins his encounter with Omar bin Rahmat and of their conversation. "Splendid job the Turkish Assassins have done," Aleksandar commented.

Gustav agreed. "Indeed, establishing an Assassin base in a capital city is advantageous to us. I suppose we must've overlooked the Kingdom of Bulgaria, since it was formed less than a decade ago. Darko, you should do what Omar recommended – visiting him in Sofia. It's important to build and maintain strong ties with fellow Assassins."


	23. Chapter 23

Darko arrived in Sofia in early October, and began to search for the Turkish Assassins' base that had been established there. He regretted not asking Omar bin Rahmat, brother to Talia bin Rahmat who was Mentor of the Turkish Assassins, where the Assassin base was located in the city.

Fortunately, Darko did not have to search long. After half an hour of searching, Darko found the Assassin insignia painted on a wall, which looked like random graffiti to the average man, along with an arrow below the insignia. It was directions to the Assassin base.

Soon Darko ended up outside a small, plain building that did not have much difference with all the other buildings in the street. There was a simple door knocker on the thick wooden door which served as the main entrance to the building.

With the door knocker installed, Darko guessed that the door had to be knocked in some kind of sequence for it to be opened. His first guess was in morse code.

Darko used the door knocker to make out a word in morse code, which was the word 'Assassin', hoping that it would work. Once he was done knocking, Darko heard the door unlock and open.

"A pleasure to meet you!" Omar shook Darko's hand. "I apologise for not telling you the base's location. You must've taken a while to find this place. How did you know the password, anyway?"

"I guessed everything. After all, the door knocker was quite a clue."

Omar grinned. "Come in, come in, make yourself at home! After all, this is really a home away from home to you."

Inside the building, Omar served Darko a cup of coffee, and he brought Darko up to speed on the events in the Kingdom of Bulgaria.

"So that's what the Assassins here are working on now?" Darko was mildly surprised. He had been told that the Turkish Assassins in Sofia were searching for a man, who had been prancing around in Assassin robes and pretending to be one. He was killing and injuring people at random, which was tarnishing the Assassins' reputation and name.

"Yes," Omar replied. "But this man is better prepared than we expected. He is skilled enough to have managed to evade both Assassins and local law enforcement so far. But luckily this fake is not skilled enough, for there is a relatively easy way to find him. This 'Assassin' is commonly seen at the Borisova gradina by civilians."

Darko made his way to the Borisova gradina, the most famous garden in the city, with a coat worn over his Assassin robes to partially conceal it. Entering the park, Darko walked around briskly, scanning the area for the fake Assassin.

The fake Assassin was walking along the path, with a sword and pistol clearly visible at his waist. Darko saw the man walking in the same direction as him, and stealthily snuck up to the fake.

Unholstering the man's pistol, Darko kicked the man's leg, causing him to fall to the ground. Using a hand to keep him there, Darko let the 'Assassin's head feel the cold metal of the pistol.

"Who are you?" Darko asked. "Why are you pretending to be one of us?"

Turning around, the man smiled crazily at Darko. Seeing his face, Darko determined at once that he was insane. He had a long scar which ran just beneath his right eye to a point next to his lips.

"I am an Assassin!" the man replied proudly. "A proud member of the Assassin Order! Anyone who tries to stop a good guy will be killed!"

The man then kicked Darko off him. Darko, having been taken unaware, stumbled backwards as the man got up from the ground. Drawing his sword, the man said, "Prepare for your death, filthy Templar!"

"This man is truly insane," Darko muttered, as he watched the man unsheathed his sword and swung it wildly.

Left with next to no choice, he shot the man with his own pistol. However, one bullet to the chest was not enough to stop him, as he was too focused on stopping Darko to be taken down by a single bullet.

Emptying the pistol of its remaining bullets, Darko watched the man collapse onto the ground. Simultaneously, two policemen showed up, running towards Darko and the dead 'Assassin' with pistols out and loaded.

"Hands in the air!" the first policeman ordered.

Obliging, Darko said, "I believe that is the man who's been troubling the streets of Sofia. The hooded, and I believe insane, man."

While the first police officer held Darko at gunpoint, the second one went to inspect the dead body. "By the gods," he gasped upon seeing his face.

"What is it?" the first officer asked, curiosity obvious in his tone.

The second officer replied, "That man is the escaped mental patient from the Thaddeus Moresky Asylum! He's been missing for over a week!"

"Almost at the same time where this madman started going around killing and injuring random civilians," the first policeman added. Holstering his pistol, the policeman told Darko, "Thank you very much for your help, sir."

However, the policeman realised that he was talking to the air, for Darko was already gone.

"Omar," Darko called as he walked into the building, thinking that Omar would be waiting. Instead of Omar, Talia bin Rahmat, Mentor of the Turkish Assassins, was there.

Talia bin Rahmat was in her early thirties, her duty as an Assassin making her look older than others her age. "What is it, Darko? Has your mission been completed?"

"Yes, Mentor. I have taken the impostor off the streets for good, and I have also discovered his identity," Darko said. "Two policemen at the scene told me that this impostor was an escaped mental patient from the Thaddeus Moresky Asylum."

Just then, Omar appeared, sipping from a freshly-made cup of coffee. "Then it appears that Thaddeus Moresky might have some affiliations with the Templars after all."

"Could you please tell me who this Thaddeus guy is?"

"Thaddeus Moresky is a Russian philanthropist, now in his fifties or early sixties. He set up an asylum here in Sofia roughly a decade ago, though there're rumours that experiments are being done on patients of the asylum."

"Tell you what, sister." Omar suggested, "Darko and I infiltrate the Thaddeus Moresky Asylum, and see exactly where his loyalties lie, whether Templar or neutral."

Talia nodded her head in approval. "But be careful, you two. Losing two Master Assassins will be a great blow to the Order."


	24. Chapter 24

Omar somehow managed to secure two sets of uniforms, one belonging to the Bulgarian Army and the other of the Ottoman Army. Donning the uniforms, the two Master Assassins made their way to the Thaddeus Moresky Asylum, located in the suburbs of Sofia.

"Greetings, I am Aleksandar Ivanovich, a military investigator sent by the Bulgarian Army," Darko gave a fake name and identity. "This gentleman here is Suleiman, a police detective of the Ottoman Police who has been summoned to help in this investigation."

Hearing what Darko had told him, the guard raised a hand to tell the two of them to wait, while he disappeared into the facility. Meanwhile, a second guard stood nearby, watching the two of them.

Minutes later, the guard came back out, this time with Thaddeus Moresky himself. He was dressed formally, with a well kept and prominent moustache.

"So you are the two investigators sent by the Bulgarian Army?" Thaddeus asked, scanning the two of them.

The guard said, "Yes, Gospodin. This man here is Aleksandar Ivanovich, a military investigator of the Bulgarian Army. The other man is Suleiman, a police detective from the Ottoman Empire."

"Apologies to have kept you all waiting," Thaddeus told them. "Please come in and take a look at the facility. I sincerely hope that we get this case closed as soon as possible."

As they walked around, touring the asylum, 'Suleiman' asked Thaddeus, "Mister Moresky, could you please tell us more about the mental patient who escaped from your facility?"

"Sure. His name we do not know, even the patient himself doesn't know his name, hence we appropriately named him Svetovid, after the Slavic deity of war. I say appropriately because we found him in a battlefield of the Second Balkan War, still in his military uniform and barely alive."

"How did he become so crazed and insane?" Darko asked.

Thaddeus sighed. "That I do not know. The asylum staff are investigating on that as we speak."

Both Master Assassins could tell that he was keeping something from them. "Could we please see your office, Mister Moresky?" 'Aleksandar' requested.

A while later, both Assassins were in the Russian's office, pretending to look around. Thaddeus was standing at the door, patiently waiting for the 'investigators' to finish their work.

Out of the blue, Darko drew his pistol and aimed it at Thaddeus Moresky. Omar said, "Tell us the truth, Mister Moresky. Lying is a sin, you know? Who made the man this insane and mad?"

"It's…it's not me, I swear!"

"If it isn't you, then who is it?" Omar, now with a shortsword in a hand, demanded to know.

Thaddeus revealed, "Samson Reza! He's one of my most involved supporters! He was the one who led all those experimentations on Svetovid!"

"If any word you say is not true, we'll come back and kill you," Omar warned, before both of them left the room.

Samson Reza was a wealthy businessman from the Qajar Dynasty, as well as a distant relative to the royal family of that dynasty. From his position and social status, if Samson were to really be a Templar, Darko and Omar guessed that he would be a high-ranking one, either a Master Templar or even a Templar Grandmaster.

"From what I know of him, Samson is a really careful guy," Omar informed. "He's almost never seen in public, and when he is spotted, he is always accompanied by a small squad of guards. It's also known to many that Samson owns a manor in the countryside, about half an hour's horse ride from here."

Darko said, "Let's go back and ask your sister what we should do first."

Hearing what the two Master Assassins told her, Talia bit her lip. "Samson Reza…he was one of us. He was very loyal and would support us financially, helping to purchase bases for Assassins and stuff like that. But he had dangerous, crazy ideas. One of his worst ones was to turn men into mindless soldiers to fight for the Assassin Order."

"Isn't that against our pursuits of free will to all? Why would a loyal member of the Assassin Order have such thoughts?" Omar was dumbfounded.

Talia explained, "Samson had this mindset of sacrificing a few to save many more. That would have been an acceptable mindset if the Assassin Order was desperate and in times of need, but at that time the mindset was considered disgusting by his fellow Assassins, and was banished from the Order."

"So he has joined the Templar Order seeking for revenge?" Darko asked.

To their surprise, Talia shook her head. "Joining the Templars I'm sure he'll never do. But getting revenge, that's a possibility."

"Do we go after Samson Reza, question him in his manor?"

"Yes, Darko, you two will do that," Talia said. "However, you two must be careful. Being an ex-Assassin, Samson probably has measures to stop Assassins from getting to him."


	25. Chapter 25

Samson Reza's manor felt more of a fortress than a manor. Located on a flat terrain with almost no greenery or rocks to hide in around the area, the manor was surrounded by low walls, though the top of the walls were spiked.

There was a watchtower inside the manor compound, with four marksmen at each corner of the viewing platform. It would be difficult for the normal assassin to enter the compound, but Darko was no ordinary assassin, he was an Assassin.

A double metal gate blocked the main entrance into the manor compound. Behind the metal gates stood a lone guard, who had a rifle slung over his back. However, the metal gates were easy to climb over, and it was the easiest way Darko could see to get into the place.

With a quick flick of his wrist, Darko fired a Phantom Blade at the guard. In a few graceful but swift movements, he climbed over the double metal gates, landing on the other side of it. Retrieving his Phantom Blade from the dead guard, Darko proceeded to hide the body in one of the many bushes across the manor courtyard.

Once the body had been hidden, Darko climbed up the manor, entering through an open window on the first floor. It would have been an effortless task, if not for the guard looking out of the same open window.

Swooping in through the window, Darko tackled the guard onto the floor. Before the guard could even utter a word, Darko knocked him unconscious with a good elbow strike to the head.

Darko left the room and walked around the manor, getting to know his surroundings. After a minute or two of exploration, Darko returned to his task of finding Samson.

Clinging gracefully from a chandelier that illuminated the living room, Darko eavesdropped on a conversation between someone who seemed to be Samson's personal assistant and a senior guard.

"Hey, the boss wants the number of guards on patrol doubled immediately," the assistant said. "He reckons that someone wants to kill him."

"Rather paranoid, is he?" the senior guard commented. "But I suppose that's why he's still alive. Alright, I'll get the word around."

As the personal assistant walked up the grand staircase in the living room, Darko leapt off the chandelier, landing right on top of the assistant. The air was knocked out of the man's lungs.

With the cold steel of his Hidden Blade touching the man's throat, Darko asked, "Where is Samson Reza?"

"Bugger off," the assistant, who had a thick English accent, spat. Darko was surprised at the reaction, which the assistant could tell, and he tried to wrestle the Assassin off him.

Luckily Darko recovered quickly, and stopped the assistant's attempt with a hand to his neck. "I will only ask once more. Where is Samson Reza?"

"In his study on the second floor. You can tell it's the study from the door, which is different from the others."

Darko and the assistant came up to the door of the study, which was thicker and better designed than the other doors. He had a gun pressed against the assistant's back.

"Sir?" the assistant called. "The guards managed to capture a hooded man in the courtyard. Right now he's in the living room, tied up and his weapons stripped off him."

The trick worked. In less than ten seconds, Samson Reza was on the other side of the study door, unlocking it. The moment the door swung open, Darko threw the assistant to one side and barrelled into Samson. Not missing a beat, Darko got up and shut the door, locking it as well.

"What the hell…" Samson was stunned at the sudden turn of events, and was still recovering.

"For the act you have done, you shall pay," Darko said as his Hidden Blade sprung. "Svetovid has been killed, if you do not know yet."

"Oh well," Samson shrugged. "I can always take another hopeless man and turn him into a killing machine."

The man was truly insane, perhaps even more insane than Svetovid himself, whom Darko had killed. This man had to die now, no matter what.  
Taking a few moments to scan the room he was in, Darko found a window at the other end of the study. It was small, but it was enough for him to fit through.

By the time the squad of guards managed to get into the study, Darko was long gone and Samson Reza was long dead.

After telling Talia the episode Darko had, she understood and was contented with Darko's actions. However, there was a worried look on her face.

"The Assassin base in Bucharest was…attacked," Talia said as she bit her lip. "My Assassins found no one in the building. They were taken."

"Who took them? Where are they?" Darko was furious and saddened at the same time.

She shook her head in disappointment. "I do not know exactly where they are, but I am certain that they are in the Russian Empire. Go to Ilyich Café in the west part of Moscow. That is an Assassin-owned establishment. Be sure to introduce yourself as Darko from Petrograd University."


	26. Chapter 26

Exactly eight days later, Darko arrived in Moscow exhausted, having ridden his horse nearly non-stop from the city of Sofia to Moscow. Dismounting from his horse, Darko entered the Ilyich Café, which was located just across the street.

"Greetings," Darko said. "May I have a cup of coffee?"

The receptionist, a rather plump Russian with a prominent beard and moustache, nodded. "You seem like a familiar man. What's your name, young lad?"

"Name's Darko, a part-time professor from Petrograd University."

"Should've said so earlier!" the man chuckled. "You ordered a few bottles of French wine a while ago, didn't you? It's been sitting in the cellar for weeks now!"

"Must've slipped my mind," Darko was slightly confused by what was happening, but decided to play along.

In the cellars, the plump man worked to push a shelf to one side, with the assistance of a thinner, older Russian. Darko noticed both of them were armed with Hidden Blades, and relaxed visibly.

After the shelf had been moved away, revealing a wall with an old torch holder on it, the plump man pulled the torch holder down as if it was some kind of lever.

Indeed it was a lever. Simultaneously, the older man pushed against the wall and an entire section of the wall swung inwards, to reveal a secret corridor.

At the end of the corridor was a spacious room, where the plump man introduced, "Welcome to one of the bases of the Russian Assassins. Allow me to introduce myself, I am Sergei, a member of the Assassin Order."

The older one stepped forward and said, "I am Nikolai Orelov, Master Assassin of the Russian Assassin Order."

His name was familiar to Darko's ears. Nikolai Orelov was well-known within the Assassin Order. Nikolai continued, "We've heard that you've come all the way to Moscow to search for your fellow Assassins, who were captured in Bucharest. Lucky for you, we know just how to help you."

"How?"

Sergei told him, "An Italian Templar named Jacopo Bonde who works as a spy for the Russian Empire. He knows much that is happening within the empire, and Nikolai and I think that there's a good chance that Jacopo knows something about the capture of your comrades."

"But a spy of Rasputin would be difficult to find, wouldn't it? I take it that he has several contacts, most of which are easier to look for."

"You think quickly, Darko. No wonder you're a Master Assassin and you're not even thirty!" Sergei commended. "You're right. With some luck you'll only have to 'chat' with one or two of Jacopo's contacts before you learn his location."

Nikolai continued for Sergei, "Your first target will be Vijay Rana, a philosophy professor from Calicut at Moscow University. On most weekends Vijay would help to teach philosophy to those that cannot afford education in the trading area of Kitay-gorod, located not far from the Red Square."

"Where do I bring him to have a 'chat'?"

"I would advise you to bring Vijay away discreetly. It only takes one civilian to lose his cool and shout 'Help! Someone's getting kidnapped!' to get you into trouble," Sergei suggested.

Dirtying his Assassin robes with dirt from the ground, Darko made his way to Kitay-gorod. Today was coincidentally a Saturday, which spared him the task of waiting to the nearest weekend.

He saw a man with chocolate-coloured skin and spectacles holding a book, talking as he was surrounded by a group of Russians.

Running up to the group, Darko said, "Professor, professor, pozvonite v politsiju!"

"Oh dear, what's happening?" Vijay closed his book and looked anxiously at the young man.

Darko lied, "A fight has broken out between two groups of students from Moscow University! They're fighting in a nearby alleyway as we speak!"

Vijay drew a pistol from his coat, making the men around him flinch. "That won't be necessary. Lead me to the place, hurry!"

Deep in an alleyway, Darko swung around, using his fist to knock the pistol out of Vijay's hand. As the pistol dropped onto the ground Darko delivered a hard kick to the Indian's abdomen, sending him sprawling onto the ground.

"Who the hell are you?" he spat.

"Where is Jacopo Bonde?" Darko demanded to know.

Vijay feigned ignorance. "Who is Jacopo Bonde? Is he someone I should know?"

Suddenly he felt something sharp touch his throat. Looking down, Vijay saw a Hidden Blade by his neck, though he did not know what it was called. "Where is Jacopo Bonde?" Darko repeated his question.

"I…I don't know!" Vijay replied. "Chris…Chris Rork! Amer…American guy, he's a goo…good friend of Jacopo's!"

"Why don't you tell me more about this Chris Rork?"

"Fat, rich…rich man, likes to flaunt his weal…wealth," Vijay stuttered.

Darko kicked Vijay in the crotch, causing him to groan and clutch his lower abdomen in pain. "Be more specific."

"Comes every few…few months and stays for a few week…weeks. He's in Mos…Moscow now and is stay…staying at the Hotel Metro…Metropol now."

"That's better," Darko said before KO-ing Vijay and leaving.


	27. Chapter 27

Cleaning the dirt off his Assassin robes to make himself look more presentable, Darko made his way to Hotel Metropol, which was not that far away from his current location.

"May I know what room is Mister Chris Rork staying in?" Darko asked the receptionist in passable Russian.

The receptionist pointed at a well-dressed plump American who had just entered the building. "That's Mister Rork right there!"

Darko walked confidently and pompously up to Chris and raised a hand halfway. Chris took his hand and they shook hands. "Pleasure to meet you, Mister Rork. You can call me Mister Felix."

"Mister Felix, nice to meet you as well. May I know why you're here, and who you are?"

"Ah, of course! Do excuse me for being so impolite. I'm an official from the Winter Palace in Petrograd."

It immediately registered within Chris' mind that Darko was a high-level government official. "I see, and I take it that you are here in the name of the Empire?"

"You are absolutely correct," Darko said. "If you permit, could we talk in a place somewhere more private? What I am about to tell you is not meant for just anyone to hear."

Chris nodded and brought Darko to his room in the Hotel Metropol. Once Chris had shut and locked the door, Darko immediately produced his pistol and trained it on his head.

"Four words for you – Where is Jacopo Bonde?"

"Elinika Estiatorio," Chris said.

Darko rolled his eyes. "So much for being a good friend, eh?"

"I have to do what I must to survive," Chris shrugged.

Shaking his head in disdain, Darko knocked the American unconscious.

"Ah, yes, the Elinika Estiatorio," Sergei was familiar with the name. "That is the name of one of the swankiest restaurants in the city! It's located on Petrovka Street. But this estiatorio is unique, because normally estiatorios only serve food, but the Elinika Estiatorio also offers rooms to stay in, which is usually only found in tavernas."

Nikolai added, "I guess it should be expected that Jacopo is staying at the Elinika Estiatorio. After all, he has a penchant for the expensive."

"Nikolai, you'll go along with Darko to the Elinika Estiatorio. Do your best to get that scumbag off the streets for good," Sergei said.

The establishment had a Greek-y feel to it, making its patrons feel like they were in Greece and not in the heart of the Russian Empire. A musician was playing Greek music on the laouto, an instrument very similar to the lute.

The two Assassins could have asked a staff member at the estiatorio and gone straight up to Jacopo's room, but they did not want to take any unforeseen risks. Thus, they sat down and ordered dinner, biding their time until something happened.

A while later, the two of them had finished their meal, and were enjoying a Greek wine known as Mavrodafni, which apparently Nikolai had tasted before as he had recommended ordering that. Luckily both of them could hold their liquor rather well.

Suddenly a man walked into the estiatorio, wearing an expensive-looking black leather tunic over a plain white shirt. Darko recognised the man as Vijay Rana, the Indian philosophy professor at Moscow University.

"That's Vijay Rana, the man I looked for yesterday," Darko muttered, loud enough so only Nikolai could hear.

Nikolai put his glass of Mavrodafni down on the table. "Well then, this could be a problem."

Vijay was making a small ruckus at the counter, though what he was saying was just out of earshot to the two Assassins. Nikolai, dressed in a Russian Army officer's uniform, decided to go and investigate.

"May I know what's the issue?" Nikolai asked them.

Seeing the pistol holstered at Nikolai's waist, Vijay changed to a lighter tone, "Oh, nothing, sir! I'm just looking for a man who's staying here, but the personnel here are giving me a bit of trouble!"  
"Who are you looking for?" Nikolai queried. "Perhaps I may be of some assistance."

"A man called Jacopo Bonde. I need to meet with him urgently!"

Turning to a staff member of the establishment, Nikolai said, "Do you know the man?"

She nodded her head. "He's staying here at the moment, in the furthest room from the stairwell on the first floor."

"You have your answer, good sir. Have a nice day," Nikolai then returned to his seat.

"We need to move, now," Nikolai told Darko. "Jacopo's on the first floor, in the furthest room from the stairwell."

By the time they got there, they found the door wide open. Instinctively Darko and Nikolai released their Hidden Blades, and the latter drew his pistol for good measure.

Entering the room, Nikolai immediately shot Vijay in the thigh to immobilise him. Darko saw Jacopo in the process of leaving the building through the window in his room.

A Phantom Blade shot through the air, ripping through the fabric of Jacopo's trousers, and a moment later the flesh of his thigh. Jacopo jerked his thigh and fell off the window, unfortunately the wrong way, which was off the building.

Jacopo landed on a discarded mattress in the alleyway beside the Elinika Estiatorio, which cushioned his fall. Pulling the damned thing out of his thigh, Jacopo threw it onto the ground.

As he helped himself up, Darko landed on top of him, making him fall back down once again. "Where are they?" Darko asked.

"Such senseless violence! I thought the Assassins weren't supposed to mix up emotions with work!" Jacopo said mockingly.

He wanted very much to slit Jacopo's throat then, but if he did that there would be next to no hope of finding Gustav, his brother and Aleksandar ever again.

Just then, Nikolai landed on the ground nearby, rolling when he landed to cushion the impact. He said, "You need to think about Matteo, not just yourself, Jacopo."

Darko had no idea who Matteo was, but it seemed to do the trick. "How the hell do you know Matteo? His existence is known to very few!"

"That is not important," Nikolai waved the matter aside. "Answer my comrade's question? Where are the Assassins you've kidnapped?"

"On the Great Understanding in Petrograd Harbour," Jacopo said. "You'll have to get past all the men guarding it to get to your fellow Assassins."

"Thanks for the help," Nikolai said, bringing down his Hidden Blade on Jacopo's body.

Unfortunately, Nikolai's hand stopped abruptly halfway, with the Hidden Blade still a distance away from Jacopo's body. The two of them were stunned by this occurrence.

By the time they recovered, Jacopo was already at the exit of the alleyway. He flashed them a ring on his finger before disappearing.

"I'll be damned," Nikolai muttered. "That's a Shard of Eden he's wearing."


	28. Chapter 28

Ilyich Café was officially closed by the time Darko and Nikolai returned. They entered by a side entrance, unlocking the door with a key Nikolai had.

"Did you kill Jacopo Bonde?" were the first words Sergei uttered when they entered.

"That's not certainly how you treat two Assassins who've come back from a rather successful mission," Darko remarked.

Nikolai shook his head. "He had a Shard of Eden on his ring finger, which helped him to escape."

Sergei shook his head in frustration. "This isn't good. Several Assassins returned from a small mission I sent them on a while ago, when you two were out on yours. They presented me hard evidence that Jacopo is a very influential and powerful Master Templar."

"And we let him escape," Darko facepalmed. "Should've killed him right there and then, Jacopo probably could've been killed even with a Piece of Eden on him."

Nikolai nodded in agreement, but said, "What has passed has passed. And I believe the priority now is freeing your friends on that ship in Petrograd."

"You will have to be quick in rescuing your friends, Darko. Petrograd is a hive of Templar activity, and though their influence is slowly dwindling, there's still a lot left there," Sergei warned.

Slightly more than half a day later, Darko arrived in Petrograd alone, having taken the Petrograd-Moscow Railway to get there quickly. Nikolai Orelov had other matters to attend to, so he could not come with Darko.

Great Understanding was powered by both sail and steam. There were quite a number of guards on its deck at any given time of the day and night, and probably some more guards below deck.

Fortunately, Sergey Oldenburg, a powerful Russian and an Assassin ally, was able to provide Darko with some support.

Support came in the form of five Bolshevik revolutionaries, dressed in early winter clothing and masked to hide their identities. Each of them was equipped with a Luger P08 pistol.

Charging towards the boat, the revolutionaries took out everyone on the deck without any casualties on their side. Darko told them, "Three of you will stay on deck. The other two will follow me below deck."

The operation went out pretty smoothly, with the only casualty a bullet wound in a revolutionary's shoulder. Darko quickly freed the three captured Assassins – Gustav de Monaco, Nikolai Kerzhakov and Aleksandar Mikovic, all of who were in the same room.

Meeting up on deck, Darko presented each revolutionary with a few Katyas as a 'token of appreciation'. Katya was the slang name for a hundred-ruble note in the Russian Empire. After that the revolutionaries and Assassins parted.

Back in Moscow, Sergei congratulated Darko on his successful mission, and met with the other Assassins for the first time. Once they were done with all the pleasantries and catching up, they got down to work.

"By now Jacopo has probably left Moscow," Sergei said. "Heck, he could've even left the Russian Empire already."

"How about Prague?" Aleksandar suggested. "The city is under the rule of Templar-backed Austria Hungary, and the place is one of the areas with stronger Templar influence, as it has been for centuries. Perhaps we might have some luck there."

Gustav said, "You all certainly could try, but no way am I going there with you. I'm too old for Assassin fieldwork."

"I want to stay here in Moscow, get acquainted with the other half of my roots," Aleksandar said.

Thus Darko and Nikolai set off for the city of Prague. The duo rode a train from the outskirts of Moscow all the way to Minsk, taking only one day. On horseback it would have taken them roughly twice as long. Darko and Nikolai proceeded to ride on horses from Minsk to Warsaw, formerly a city of the Russian Empire but now under German rule. The horse ride was one and a half days long.

The last leg of the two Assassins' journey was another train ride, this time from Warsaw to Prague, taking only eleven hours. They had completed the journey from Moscow to Prague in less than one week, a feat unable to be reached if it were to be attempted in the previous century.

To Darko's surprise, he found Jules Fisher at the railway station in Prague. Nikolai did not understand why he was so surprised at seeing an Englishman.

"It's just an Englishman, Darko. You seem so fascinated at him, as if he was from a different planet!" Nikolai mused.

Darko said, "It's not the fact that he's an Englishman that I'm so fascinated. That man is Jules Fisher, a British intelligence agent and a member of the Assassins."

Jules felt a light tap on his shoulder, making him jerk. What he saw when he turned his head nearly brought him off his feet.

"Jesus Christ! Darko, what are you doing here!" he said, still recovering from shock.

Darko smiled. "How about we chat at a place somewhere more private?"

Soon the three of them were chatting in a small building in the city of Zizkov, which was very near Prague. The building was owned and used by the MO5 as a base of operations within the Austro-Hungarian Empire.

"Mister Fisher, we need your help," Nikolai said. "My younger brother and I are looking for a Master Templar named Jacopo Bonde."

"That name I do not recognise. But maybe one of my targets would," Jules told them. "I was assigned to establish and lead a MO5 cell here. Fortunately, a quarter of my agents in Sussex were sent here as well. We've been trying to tracking down Templars in the region, most of who are citizens of the Central Powers, for nearly two weeks now, and there are rather satisfying results."

"Tell us, then," Darko said. "Maybe we can help you with some targets."

"Iren Abaci, a wealthy spice trader from Istanbul. He heads the Abaci Spice Company, which owns a few spice plantations in the East," Jules informed. "He usually travels around pretty much anywhere around the world, but since the war broke out Iren's been staying only in Central Powers or neutral countries."

"And since you're telling me of him that means that he is currently nearby?" Darko deduced.

"Yes, he's currently in Prague to sell some spices, though my agents and I believe that's not the main reason why he's here. We suspect Iren's trying to strengthen the Templars' influence in the city. Go and investigate this."


	29. Chapter 29

Iren Abaci, as it turned out, was a name many of the stall owners at the marketplace in Prague were familiar with. They knew him as a helpful man, who would donate some of his earnings to the stall owners who were not earning much.

Darko and Nikolai gathered that Iren was currently staying at a hotel in the working class district of the city.

When the two Assassins were near the hotel, about to walk in through its front doors, they saw Iren stroll out, guarded by two men in civilian clothing.

"This isn't good, we can't simply attack him anywhere in the hotel," Nikolai whispered. "The man may have more guards in the hotel, posing as ordinary men or even staff members."

"Let's follow the man and see where he's going," Darko told his brother. "Opportunities might present themselves."

True enough, along the way, Iren needed to use the toilet, thus he hopped out of the carriage and entered a small cul-de-sac. His two guards stood at the entrance of the one-way street, making sure no one entered while their employer was doing his business.

Darko and Nikolai scaled up a building beside the cul-de-sac, entering it without the knowledge of the guards. They dropped in silently right behind Iren, who was in the midst of doing his business.

Snick. The siblings' Hidden Blades ejected in near-unison. Upon hearing the sound, Iren's ears tingled. His head turned around, only to pale severely when he saw the two Assassins.

"Alert your guards and we'll kill you," Nikolai threatened.

He nodded in reply.

"Good," Darko said with a formal smile. "Now, tell us the reason why you're here, Templar."

"Can't a Templar go around doing business and earning money? Not everything a Templar does is to help the Order."

Taking a step closer to the Ottoman, Nikolai warned, "Our patience is growing thin, Mister Abaci. We know you're here to make contact with the local Templars."

Sighing, Iren said, "Since you know that already, why have you two cornered me in a one-way street? There must be something else you want to know. Let me guess, my partners' names?"

"You're smart for your kind," Darko complimented.

"Thank you for the compliment," replied Iren. "Now, I can only tell you the details of one partner, and that's because I don't have a strong liking for him."

"Turning your enemies against one another, eh? That's pretty clever," Nikolai noted. "Tell us who, then."

"A rather high-ranking member of the Austria-Hungarian Feldgendarmerie, the military police, named Sebastian Valerius. He does administration work within the Feldgendarmerie, though he sometimes oversees operations as well. Sebastian's in his late fifties, with amber eyes and a shitty personality, if I say so myself."

One second later Iren collapsed with a Phantom Blade wedged in between his two collarbones. Darko retrieved the Phantom Blade from the dying Templar.

"We…we know you lot are…are looking for Jaco…Jacopo," were the Ottoman's final words.

The two Assassins left the alleyway, knocking the two guards at the entrance senseless in the process.

Back in Zizkov, Darko and Nikolai reported everything to Jules.

"Shit," that was the first word that came out of Jules' mouth. "This isn't looking too good as I hoped. Sebastian Valerius is one of my most valuable informants. To think that he could've been providing me with false information all this while! He needs to be stopped ASAP."

"We were told that Sebastian is in his late fifties and has amber eyes, is that true?" Nikolai asked, wanting to verify the information they had been given.

Jules nodded in reply, adding, "You two should also know that Sebastian has an…eccentric personality. Anyway, you can find him at the Durer Training School in the city, where that scumbag works."

It was already night time then, and Sebastian had probably retired for the night. Hence, the two Assassins decided to get some much-needed rest before striking the next day.

Waking up before dawn, the two Assassins made their way to Durer Training School in Prague, which was Sebastian's workplace. They waited around outside for Sebastian.

About forty-five minutes later, a black car arrived outside the building. Sebastian stepped out of the car, dressed in Feldgendarmerie uniform. Darko and Nikolai knew that they would have to act fast, since there were two military policemen standing guard outside Durer Training School.

"I'll hold them off, brother. You focus on kidnapping Sebastian and getting him away," Nikolai told Darko.

Running up to Sebastian, Darko released his Hidden Blade and held him at knifepoint. While the onlookers were stunned, Darko knocked Sebastian out cold and dragged him back into his car.

As Darko shut the door on Sebastian's side, the onlookers began to regain their senses, including the two armed guards in front of the building.

Nikolai immediately sprang forward, holding them off as Darko got into the driver's seat of the car and drove away. Seeing the car speed away, Nikolai decided that he had bought his brother enough time and fled the scene.


	30. Chapter 30

Sebastian Valerius was surprisingly calm when he woke up to find himself tied to a chair and surrounded by two masked Assassins.

"Oh, one of you is Darko Kerzhakov, am I right? Mister Kerzhakov, you may remove your mask. I know what your face looks like, as do many other Templars in the region," Sebastian revealed. "That is, of course, thanks to Jacopo Bonde, one of the greatest Master Templars of our time."

One of the Assassins removed his mask. "Well then, Mister Valerius. I've fulfilled a request of yours, now it's time for you to fulfil a request of mine."

"You're a cunning man, Mister Kerzhakov," Sebastian said with a grin. "Let's here what you wish to request me."

"Where is Jacopo?" Darko asked him. "Or anyone who knows where Jacopo is?"

"I can't answer your first question, but the second one I could. But I require something from you Assassins in exchange for my information."

"This is hardly the time for you to be bargaining, Mister Valerius," the masked Assassin, Nikolai, said. "We two could kill you any moment now if we're unhappy."

Sebastian chuckled. "But you wouldn't, you know why? That's because you need me. Without me you would have to find another Templar to interrogate, which is frankly a real chore for you Assassins."

Darko sighed. "What do you require?"

"The death of a person. In particular the composer Theodor Leschetizky, currently living in Dresden. Luckily for you Dresden is not that far away from Prague. Go now, you wouldn't want to keep me waiting, would you?"

They decided that only Darko would embark on this mission into the German Empire.

Arriving in Dresden in the evening on the 13th of November, 1915, Darko found accommodation in a tavern popular with the locals.

After resting for a short while in his room, Darko went down to get some information on Theodor. Stuffing a handful of Papiermarks into the tavernkeeper's hand, Darko ordered a pint of beer and told him to keep the change.

"Hey, do you know Theodor Leschetizky?" Darko asked. "I'm sure you do, he's a pretty famous person in the city, isn't he?"

The bartender nodded. "Yes, I do know who he is. Heck, I even know where he lives!"

"If I may trouble you, may you tell me where he lives? Relax, I won't do any harm to the man."

"Sure, if you say so."

The next morning, Darko made his way to the Leschetizky residence in the city. He saw the man in the courtyard behind the low, easily-scalable walls surrounding the residence. Darko took slow, calm steps towards the main gate, taking his time.

"Opa, opa!" a girl-ish voice cried out in glee, as a girl hardly older than a toddler came running out of the house.

Suddenly Darko froze. What the hell was he doing? Going to kill an innocent man for an enemy of his, and for his benefit! Sebastian Valerius could rot in hell.

Theodor looked around and saw Darko. Seeing the look on the young man's face, Theodor turned to his granddaughter immediately. "Ilse, get in the house, now."

Getting up from the bench he was sitting on, Theodor went to open the gate. It was only when he unlocked the gate that Darko snapped back into reality from his deep thoughts.

"May I help you?"

"Mister Leschetizky, you need to get out of here now. Someone's here to kill you."

"Funny when you say that. I thought you're the one that's here to kill me."

Darko was surprised. "How…how did you know, Mister Leschetizky?"

"Your face told me everything, well, almost everything. The rest of it came from a tavernkeeper, a good friend of mine actually. He informed me that a man had asked him about me the previous night," Theodor said. "So how come I'm not dead yet?"

"I was about to do just that," Darko said with a shrug. "But then I realised the man who put me to this is a bastard. I'd be better off killing that bastard than killing a man like you."

"Good you came to your senses, boy. How would you like to accompany me to Bad Ischl? It's a spa town in the Austrian area of Austria-Hungary. My family will be there as well, once they are done with my 'funeral'."

Theodor and Darko travelled from Dresden to Bad Ischl via train. They had to switch trains a few times along the way since there was no direct train to their destination.

Arriving in the town one and a half days later, Darko parted ways with Theodor.

By the time Darko returned to Zizkov, most of the people in and around the area knew that Theodor Leschetizky had died due to 'natural causes'.

Darko entered the room where Sebastian was being held and showed him the newspaper article on Theodor's death. "You took your bloody time, Darko," Sebastian commented.

"I had to make sure Theodor died of 'natural causes', didn't I?" Darko said with a faked mischievous wink.

"God, how are you a Master Assassin?" Sebastian said. "Now that you've done what I wanted, I'll give you what you want."

"The man you should seek is Enrico Ferdinand, a high-ranking member of the Templars and the Honoured Society living in Palermo, Sicily. He claims that he's the only legitimate son of King Umberto I of Italy, and that Victor Emmanuel III is but a fake. Enrico thinks that by rising through the ranks of the Italian underworld he'll eventually reclaim the throne."

"An insane man by the sounds of it," Darko remarked. "How did he become a high-ranking Templar?"

Sebastian agreed. "He may sound like someone who should be locked up in an asylum, but Enrico is brave, and most important of all, very loyal to the Templars."

"Let's test his loyalty, shall we?" Nikolai said with a mischievous grin.

Darko released his Hidden Blade and walked up to Sebastian. "Let me tell you a little something, Mister Valerius, since you're going to die. Theodor Leschetizky is not dead, he's living a peaceful life in the town of Bad Ischl. Goodbye, Mister Valerius."

Sebastian died with a stunned look on his face and a slash wound at his neck. Walking to the door, Darko opened it and called, "The man is dead!"

Almost immediately two MO5 agents rushed into the room, getting to work to dispose of the dead Templar. Jules walked in after the agents and asked, "What now?"

"My quest requires me to head to Sicily to find a Templar named Enrico Ferdinand. Apparently he's a member of the Honoured Society, whatever that is," Darko told him.

"The Honored Society is an Italian criminal organisation, basically a screwed up version of the Mafia," Jules explained. "I hear they're powerful, especially in Sicily. When you are there, you have to be careful. Word of your arrival could spread very quickly to the Templars there."


	31. Chapter 31

The most direct route into the Kingdom of Italy from Prague was by entering it through its border with Austria-Hungary. However, the two countries were currently at war, with the Kingdom of Italy with the Triple Entente and Austria-Hungary on the Triple Alliance's side. Thus, entering the country from Austria-Hungary was now near-impossible.

Darko and Nikolai's solution was to enter the Kingdom of Italy through Switzerland, a neutral country. Their solution worked, and the siblings reached the city of Milan in late November of the year 1915.

From Milan they took a train south to Genoa, a city facing the Mediterranean as well as a major seaport in Italy. They managed to get aboard a cruise steamship bound for Palermo. On the way the cruise ship would stop by several cities within the Kingdom of Italy, including Rome and Naples.

One and a half weeks later, the cruise steamship docked in Palermo. Darko and Nikolai had enjoyed themselves on the ship, getting some much-needed rest from their Assassin duties.

Reaching the city, the two Assassins found it on high alert, with Carabinieri patrols walking about Palermo. They found out the reason was because an attack had been carried out by the Honoured Society less than a week ago, targeting a local state-owned bank.

Fortunately, Jules Fisher had given the two Assassins the identity of an Assassin contact in Palermo. The contact was a maresciallo, or a marshal in the Carbinieri. A marshal was a sub-officer within the Carabinieri, being lower in rank than a lieutenant.

Before long the two Assassins found their contact, Maresciallo Frank Gatti of the Carabinieri. They found him patrolling the streets of Palermo, armed with a M1887 Vetterli bolt-action rifle, accompanied by two other policemen. They managed to identify Frank through several facial features described to them by Jules.

"Are you Mister Frank Gatti?" Darko asked the Carabinieri sub-officer.

Frank nodded in reply. "The name is Frank Gatti, maresciallo of the Carabinieri. May I know who you are?"

"Excellent, but right now my name isn't important. Right now your nephew is in hospital, having been run over by a carriage," Darko lied. "We were hired by your brother to find you."

He raised an eyebrow. Frank had a brother but he did not have a nephew. Before Frank could utter a word Nikolai added, "Ezio Machiavelli is his name, am I right?"

Frank froze for a short moment, before realising what was going on. "Ah, yes! How could I forget about my dearest nephew! Lead me to the hospital, quickly!"

Darko and Nikolai led the Assassin into an alleyway. After ensuring that no one else was around, Darko introduced himself, "This is Nikolai Kerzhakov, member of the Assassin Order. I am Darko Kerzhakov, a Master Assassin."

"Oh? I've heard of your exploits. A good example of what siblings can accomplish together, I must say," Frank commented. "How did you all find me, anyway?"

"Jules Fisher," Darko explained.

He smiled upon hearing the name. "Now that's a name I haven't heard in a while. If you excuse me, I need to get back on patrol. Tell you what, you two should go and buy a ticket for tonight's play at the Teatro Massimo, a play by Machiavelli. We can talk about Assassin matters while watching a play developed by an Assassin!"

When Darko and Nikolai purchased the tickets for that night's play at the Teatro Massimo, they understood why Frank had made that suggestion. Only a small portion of the tickets had been sold when the two Assassins got there, which meant that there would be few people in the theatre.

True enough, there were not many streaming into the Teatro Massimo that evening.

Inside the theatre, the three Assassins sat together in a corner of the theatre, where no one was around for a number of seats around them.

"So why are you all here?" Frank initiated the conversation.

Nikolai replied, "We're looking for a Templar named Enrico Ferdinand. Apparently he lives here in the city and is a high-ranking member of the Honoured Society."

The Assassin bit his lip at the name. "My contacts and I are also searching for Enrico. But I'm afraid he's a man of the shadows, even more skilled in remaining undetected than most Assassins."

"Contacts? What about comrades, fellow Assassins?" Darko asked.

Frank shook his head. "There were a few, but many of them were conscripted into the war. Those that weren't, like me, were killed under 'mysterious circumstances'."

Darko smiled at the air quotes Frank made. "And what do you think those 'mysterious circumstances are?"

"The work of Enrico and his lackeys," Frank said. "He's not the only Templar or Templar-affiliate running around in Sicily, you know?"

"Who's our first target?" both Assassins asked in unison.

Frank chuckled. "Eager beavers, are you? Alright, your first target is in this theatre. His name is Francois Rouget, a French Templar and actor. In this play he's playing as Timoteo."

The two Assassins took their time to study the Frenchman. Francois was a handsome bald man with a faint French accent and a designer stubble.

After the play, Frank returned to his home while Darko and Nikolai lingered around the Teatro Massimo, waiting for Francois. Roughly thirty minutes after the play ended, the two Assassins saw a car pull out of the back of the theatre, with Francois behind the wheel.

Looking in the rearview mirror, Francois saw two hooded men chasing after the car. "Shit, Assassins," Francois mumbled. He stepped harder on the pedal, accelerating the car.

"Oh, I think he knows we're after him," Darko whispered to Nikolai.

Nodding, Nikolai suggested, "How about we chase him from the rooftops? It'll be harder for Francois to spot us."

Going with Nikolai's suggestion, the two Assassins switched to the rooftops and continued the chase. Francois kept the car going at the same quick speed for a while longer before slowing back down to his original speed.

Catching up to the car at a traffic junction, Darko scaled off the building he was on and landed on the roof of the car. Opening the passenger seat door from the roof, Darko managed to get in the car from the top without falling off.

With a pistol pushing against Francois' hip, Darko ordered him to continue driving and follow his directions until he came to somewhere deserted enough to stop the car and begin his interrogation.

After about fifteen minutes of driving, Darko ordered Francois to stop at the side of an empty small street. Immediately, Francois put up a struggle, trying to get the pistol out of Darko's hands.

Darko was stunned since he had thought that Francois would not try to escape. Francois could tell and took advantage of it, quickly disarming Darko and taking his pistol.

"Not so high and mighty now, eh, Assassin?" Francois smirked.

Pain jolted up his legs a moment later. Francois looked down at his legs, where the pain had originated from and found a Hidden Blade in his thigh.

Darko said, "You forgot about the trusty weapon of the Assassins. Now that's enough games for one day, let's get on to business, shall we?"

Francois nodded, trying to ignore the painful sting in his thigh. Darko pulled the Hidden Blade out and kept it. "Alright, why don't you start by telling me where Enrico Ferdinand is?"

"Who?" there was a blank look in Francois' eye, and Darko could tell that he did not recognise the name.

"Your friend in the Honoured Society," Darko added.

"There are a few," Francois was still clueless.

Shaking his head, Darko continued, "The Templar claims to be the only legitimate son of King Umberto I and the true heir to the Kingdom of Italy. Enrico thinks that through the Italian underworld he can 'reclaim' the throne."

"Ah!" Francois' eyes lit up. "Yes, yes, I do know of a person like that. He goes by many different names, and I suppose Enrico Ferdinand is just one of them. I've never met him personally, but I know him as Flavio Rosell."

"Thank you for the information. Rest in peace, Templar," Darko was about to finish Francois off, until a gunshot rang out, causing Darko to flinch.

He felt something warm in his stomach and put a hand to it, trying to quell the odd warmth. Darko felt liquid on his hands and immediately brought it up to see. It was blood!

"That bastard," Darko mumbled, trying to stop the blood from flowing out with his hand.

Getting out of the car, Darko took aim at the fleeing Templar with his Phantom Blade and fired. The Phantom Blade hit Francois right in the back of his head, causing him to fall flat on his face.

Hobbling over to the dead or dying man, Darko retrieved the blade and pistol and returned to the car.

"Now how do I drive this?"


	32. Chapter 32

A car stopped outside Frank's house around a quarter of an hour later. Frank was in his living room having his supper when he heard the tyres screech outside.

Who could it be? Frank wondered. Wearing his Hidden Blade just for good measure, Frank made his way to the door and looked through the peephole. A black car was outside and someone was hobbling towards the door.

Frank gasped and quickly unlocked the door, opening it wide. "What the hell happened to you, Darko?"

Darko said, "That Frenchman shot me in the gut. But no worries, he's dead. Can I come in?"

"Of course you can!" Frank gestured for Darko to enter his house. "Make yourself at home while I get the medical supplies."

Frank was skilled and precise in first-aid, having fixed up Darko's wound in a matter of minutes. "Where's your brother?"

"He's at the tavern he and I are staying at. At first I thought of going there, but it wouldn't be good if I walked into a nearly-full tavern with a bullet in my stomach."

"Agreed," Frank nodded. "So what did you manage to get from Francois?"

"Enrico goes by several different names, some of which his fellow Templars have not heard of before," Darko told him. "For example, Francois did not know him as 'Enrico Ferdinand' but as 'Flavio Rosell'."

Frank remarked, "Cunning. Anyway, I managed to get in contact with a correspondence of mine within the Honoured Society. He's a teenager named Carlo Gambino, who was born into a family that works for the Honoured Society, and he's no different. Carlo serves as a hitman for the high-ups there."

"A man like him could serve to be a good ally to the Assassins," Darko pointed out.

Agreeing, Frank added, "Carlo also has the qualities and mindset of an Assassin. Perhaps in the future I'll convince him to join us. But at the moment being our ally is enough for Carlo. He gave me some good information."

Producing a photograph, Frank showed it to Darko and explained, "This is what Enrico Ferdinand, aka Flavio Rosell looks like."

In the photograph a man in his late twenties was dressed in an expensive suit and a bowler hat. There was a pocket watch on the suit and upon closer inspection, Darko found that there was a Templar cross on the faceplate of the pocket watch.

"Is this photo recent or outdated?"

Frank answered, "Carlo told me that the photo was taken about a decade ago. That would put Enrico in his late thirties or early forties now. The man who took this photograph is Dylan Clearweather, a British Templar and an associate of Enrico's."

"Where is he?" Darko asked.

"Dylan Clearweather is currently in prison on Santo Stefano, sentenced for 'attempted treason'. The real reason is that he tried to switch sides a few months back, but was caught by the Templars before he could do so," Frank informed. "I can provide you with Carabinieri uniforms, though you two will have to make your way to Santo Stefano yourselves. Do bring Dylan back to Palermo alive, Darko."

Unfortunately, Nikolai fell sick before the two Assassins could set out to the prison island. Thus, Darko went on the mission alone.

The ride from Palermo to Santo Stefano took three days. Darko was on a modest-sized patrol boat along with several other Carabinieri men. Darko had the uniform and authority of a tenente, a lieutenant.

Santo Stefano was well-guarded, since it had housed many 'celebrity inmates' since its creation. Two guards were watching the men get off the patrol boat.

"Hey, you!" one of the guards pointed at Darko as he got off the patrol boat. "Stop right there!"

Both guards walked up to Darko as he turned around to meet them. Realising that Darko was of a higher rank than them, the guard who had called out to Darko apologised. "My sincerest apologies, sir. I just felt that you were suspicious, having not seen your face before and all."

Darko nodded his head, accepting the man's apology. "May I ask, where is Dylan Clearweather?"

"The photographer, you mean? He's being held in the block furthest away from the entrance," the guard told him. "Have a good day, sir."

In front of the entrance to the prison facility were two guards, processing everyone who entered and exited the prison. "Please show your identification, sir," a guard asked as Darko walked by.

Grabbing the first guard's hand, Darko twisted it and at the same time kicked him in the crotch. The impact caused the guard to black out, probably from too much pain.

Before any of the nearby Carabinieri could react, Darko reached out for the second guard, forcing the bolt-action rifle out of his hands and rammed it into his stomach. In the midst of all the chaos and confusion, Darko dropped the rifle and sprinted into the prison.

By the time Darko made it to the area where Dylan was being held, the Carabinieri personnel on the island were on full alert, searching for the intruder. Fortunately, there was confusion as they had no idea who or where the intruder was.

He found Dylan in one of the cells, sitting on the bare floor. Dylan was stick-thin and had an unkempt beard. "What's going on?" he asked, seeing Darko arrive.

Unlocking the door with a stolen key, Darko said, "Come with me."

Just down the corridor, the two of them encountered a trio of Carabinieri guards. "Don't kill them," Darko instructed Dylan.

Surging forward, Darko delivered a crescent moon kick to the first guard's chest. As the guard spun towards the floor, Darko slammed his body into the second guard, taking him by surprise and making him drop his rifle.

Meanwhile, Dylan landed a flurry of punches on the third guard, each punch as precise and painful. His final punch landed on the guard's jaw, knocking him unconscious.

"Sure you're a photographer only?" Darko asked with a smile.

Dylan smiled back. "On most days, yes. Watch the hallway, make sure no one's around. I need to do something important."

Half a minute later, Dylan had stripped a guard of his uniform and worn it over his prisoner overalls. "Alright, let's get out of here."

Arriving at the dock, the two of them hijacked a patrol boat. Luckily Dylan knew how to steer a boat and managed to drive it back to Palermo.

Back in Palermo three days later, Dylan asked Darko, "Who exactly are you? Why did you help me get out of Santo Stefano?"

"The Assassins sent me to help," Darko told him. "You were about to sell out the Templars to us when you got arrested, weren't you?"

Dylan nodded his head. "So I suppose you want something from me since you helped me escape."

"I was told that you were an associate of Enrico Ferdinand, the Templar I'm hunting for," Darko explained. "You took a photograph of him a few years back. Could you tell me more about Enrico, as well as his whereabouts?"

"Well, if you've managed to find me I'm certain you know already that he goes by many names. Enrico Ferdinand is his real name, that I'm sure. As for his whereabouts, I have no clue. But Enrico has many friends and allies who might. The ones I find most likely to know his location are Louis Blonc, Enrico's own lawyer, and Marco Ficino, Enrico's brother and a local doctor."

Darko thanked Dylan Clearweather and told him to stay at a small hotel in the city, where he assured Dylan that he would be pretty safe there.


	33. Chapter 33

Marco Ficino was at work as usual in his clinic, doing some paperwork when his receptionist walked into the room. "Mister Ficino, you have a patient."

"Bring him in," Marco told the receptionist as he closed a file and put it aside.

Darko walked into the room and sat down. "Good morning, Mister Ficino. I came here because I heard good things about you. A good friend of mine consulted you a while ago. He recovered quickly after consulting you."

"I'm flattered," Marco said with a polite smile. "So what have you come down with?"

"A terrible stomach ache, doctor," Darko lied. "It has lasted for nearly a week now, and it still lasts."

Producing a stethoscope, Marco told him, "I'll have to check your heartbeat, sir."

Marco leaned close to Darko, with his stethoscope on Darko's chest. He heard a snick, which he found familiar but could not remember where he had heard it before.

"Where is your brother, Marco?" Darko asked. At the same time, Marco felt something pressing against his chest. Looking down, Marco found a Hidden Blade at his chest. The snick he heard just now was Darko's Hidden Blade being sprung.

He pretended to be dumbfounded. "Brother? I'm an only child! And would you please put that weapon away, whatever that is."

"This weapon has taken the lives of many of your fellow Templars. I wouldn't hesitate to end one more life using this, Marco. You had best tell me where your brother is right away."

Marco sighed and shook his head. "If you've managed to find me and know who I am, I'm sure you know that Enrico is difficult to find. Enrico trusts no one, including his own brother. I'm afraid I don't know where he is."

"Then how do I find him?"

"I…I don't know." Darko would have believed Marco if not for his slight stammer.

He saw one of Marco's hands just out of view. Darko grabbed Marco's wrist and pulled it up to see what was in his hand. It was a revolver which Marco had been planning to use.

Snatching the revolver from Marco, Darko emptied all but one of the chambers. Giving the chamber a spin, Darko snapped it back into place and fired a round at Marco. Marco closed his eyes, bracing himself if a bullet were to hit him. Nothing came out of the barrel but smoke.

It seemed like pure luck whether a bullet would fly out of the revolver, but it was not. Darko had taken a short glance at the chamber before snapping back into place to ensure that a bullet would not be fired when he pulled the trigger.

"We can do this as many times as needed, Marco. How do I find Enrico Ferdinand?"

"Lu…lure him!" Marco revealed. "Enric…Enrico gets mad when…when something dea…dear to him gets take…taken away! He him…himself will intervene if…if that kind of…of things happen!"  
"So are you considered dear to him?"

"Not…not really," Marco cleared his throat before continuing, "But I know…know who is. Recent…recently Enrico has fallen in deep love with a wo…woman. Her name is…is Consuela Liliworth, who's half-Spanish, half…half-English. Enrico entrust…entrusted her with the handling of one…one of his most beloved business…businesses, a small…small insurance company used for money laundering and…and fraud. The company is call…called Ferdinand Insurance Co., and…and the building is located near…near the harbour."

"A crafty woman I'm about to deal with, then," Darko deduced. "Thank you for your help, Marco."

Rewarding Marco mercy for his assistance, Darko decided to leave him alive. He made haste to the port district of Palermo, searching for the company building.

The company building was a brick one, with the words 'Ferdinand Insurance Co.' painted in white. Darko walked into the brick building and up to the lady at the front counter. "Is Miss Liliworth around?"

Standing up, the lady gestured at herself. "I am Consuela Liliworth. Why are you looking for me, may I ask?"

A good, hard hit to her head knocked her unconscious. The guard who was standing around the area immediately reached for his clothing, pulling out a pistol concealed in it. Darko quickly flicked his wrist at the guard, firing a Phantom Blade. Placing Consuela's body over his shoulder, Darko left the building.

Luckily Darko did not have to wait long for a motor taxi. Flagging it down, Darko got in and told the taxi driver his destination, which was a street away from Frank's house.

"Jesus, my half-sister sure knows how to drink," Darko said casually. "Even though she can't take her liquor, and she knows that too. Fancy getting dead drunk in the middle of the day."

"Must be the war, I suppose," the cab driver said with a chuckle. "I guess bad things make both men and women want to get drunk as hell."

After alighting from the taxi, Darko carried Consuela the remaining distance to Frank's house, entering it by a back door. Frank was currently out working, and would not be home for a while. Darko took his time, securely tying up Consuela with rope.

Soon Consuela woke up, slightly fuddled. Shaking her head to clear it, Consuela quickly realised what was happening it. "You know who you're messing with? The woman of Enrico Ferdinand! Let me go now and I'll let the matter slide."

"This is hardly the situation for you to say that. Besides, I don't want you to 'let the matter slide', I want the contrary actually."

She stared at Darko as if he was mad. "Are you insane? Do you know who Enrico Ferdinand is?"

"Of course, he's a high-ranking member of the Honoured Society, isn't he? That's the man I want," Darko said. "I was told that I could use you to lure Enrico out."

"Bastard," she spat. "I hope Enrico kills you."

Frank was surprised to find Darko in the living room when he returned with Nikolai. "Jesus, Darko! I know you have a spare key, but try not to make a poor man like me have a heart attack in his own home!"

Darko smiled. "You brought Nikolai over?"

"I checked out of the tavern we were staying at, seeing that we won't need it anymore," Nikolai informed. "How's it been, brother?"

"Not bad. I managed to capture Enrico's woman, a Consuela Liliworth," Darko told the two Assassins. "She's tied up in one of the rooms here. Don't worry Frank, I came in by the back door."

"So what's your plan?" asked Frank.

Darko replied, "Use her to lure Enrico out."

"That's insane, but good luck with that."


	34. Chapter 34

The lure worked well, as evidenced by the great increase in the number of Honoured Society men on the streets, mainly muscular brutes. They were all on a lookout for 'hooded suspicious men or women', rumoured to be an order from a high-up within the Society.

It was a strange sight to see so many men on the streets, especially at this time of the year where the weather was cold and snow was beginning to fall.

Darko wore a lounge coat and bowler hat out. It was a very different dressing style he was wearing, which would help in hiding his identity. What looked like christmas baubles were hanging around Darko's waist. In fact those baubles were actually re-shaped improvised explosive devices (IEDs), provided to Darko by Frank, who had gotten them from Assassin allies in the country.

Arriving outside a three-storey building, Darko scouted the area for gangsters. There were a few around the area, who Darko took out silently and swiftly. The building was being used as a major warehouse for the Honoured Society, and it was expected that there would be guards around the area, especially after recent events.

Once Darko had ensured that all the Honoured Society gangsters had been taken out, he began planting the IEDs. The IEDs had a timer of five minutes once activated. Planting them all around the exterior of the building, Darko fled with two minutes to spare.

Two minutes later, Darko watched the explosion from atop a nearby rooftop. He had taken his bowler hat off so his vision would not be affected.

The explosion destroyed most of the ground floor of the building. Without the ground floor, the higher storeys of the building began to collapse from the bottom up, creating a slightly animated effect. In less than half a minute all three storeys of the building was reduced to a pile of debris.

Darko smiled at himself, contented with his work. He got off the building and returned to Frank's house.

"What a spectacle you've created, Darko," Nikolai commented as Darko entered the house. "Frank was summoned by his Carabinieri superiors to the warehouse which you blew up. Apparently the explosion was heard halfway across Palermo. This will definitely leave a dent in Enrico's pride, if not his pocket."

The Honoured Society did not like being messed around with, especially Enrico. In a matter of hours, Enrico managed to complete the identification of an Assassin known to be operating in the same city, the process which he had been trying to complete for months now. That Assassin was Frank Gatti, a maresciallo of the Carabinieri.

In the middle of the night, Darko and Nikolai, who were both sleeping in the same room, were awoken by the sound of the front door being banged open. Getting up quickly, the two Assassins got into strategic positions inside the room.

Soon the room door was slammed open, and a masked man rushed in, armed with a Lee-Enfield rifle. Instinctively, Darko drew his pistol and shot the man in the stomach. He hoped that the gunshot would alert Frank, who was sleeping in a room on the floor above them.

Moving out of the room, Nikolai saw two assailants heading up the staircase to the first floor. Simultaneously, Nikolai found two masked men in the living room of the house. Since the men in the living room were nearer, Nikolai decided to attack them.

A throwing knife whizzed through the air but its trajectory was abruptly stopped by a body. The knife pierced through the man's flesh, going right into his throat. Nikolai watched as the hitman collapsed.

Just as the second assailant raised his rifle, ready to fire it at the Assassin, Nikolai danced over and grabbed it, forcing it out of his hands. He then slammed the rifle hard against the masked man's neck, snapping it.

Swinging around, Nikolai saw a third masked man fall to the floor. He recognised him as the one that Darko had shot earlier. This time, it was also Darko that stopped him, albeit with a Hidden Blade instead of a pistol. Looking carefully through the bullet hole at his stomach, Nikolai noticed that the man was wearing a bulletproof vest underneath.

"They're wearing bulletproof vests," Nikolai pointed out to his brother. "Certainly more well-prepared than we thought."

Darko nodded calmly, then realised that Frank was still upstairs, facing off against the remainder of the invaders. "Hurry, we need to get up there now. Frank's all alone against all those scum."

When they got upstairs, Darko and Nikolai found Frank battling against two of the hitmen. He was doing alright so far, but they doubt that Frank would be able to hold out for much longer. Darko swiftly fired a Phantom Blade at one of the hitmen.

The last hitman heard a strangulated sound from beside him and distracted, turned to see what was happening. That distraction caused the man his life. Frank, who had noticed and seized the opportunity, slashed the hitman's throat while he was distracted.

"Shit, this isn't good," Frank said. "We need to get out of here right away."

Minutes later, thick smoke drifting out of one of the rooms attracted the attention of two snipers watching from across the street. They were part of the hitman squad, there to ensure that Frank did not leave the house alive.

Soon the thick smoke grew even thicker and flames began to engulf the house. Little did the two snipers know that Frank had already fled, along with Darko and Nikolai. The three Assassins had left the house through a secret underground passage.

The three Assassins emerged from the passage to find themselves in a cellar. Frank had informed the two of them earlier that the cellar, which was at the end of the passageway, was part of a wine shop owned by a fellow Assassin. The fellow Assassin lived in Syracuse and visited Palermo only once or twice annually. Sealing the passageway, the three Assassins rested in the cellar for the remainder of the night.


	35. Chapter 35

To most people Frank Gatti was now dead. Even Enrico, who had called for the attack, believed it. After all, who could survive such a large fire?

Five days later, Frank's funeral was carried out. The ceremony was rather low-key, with mostly Carabinieri personnel at the procession. An empty coffin, which was supposed to be Frank's, was draped in an Italian flag.

However, that was far from the truth. Frank was still alive and well, only living under an alias and having a different occupation. Frank Gatti was now Francis Guercino, a wine seller. Frank had gained permission from the Assassin who owned the wine shop to sell all the wine in the cellar.

"Tonight you will meet with my contact within the Honoured Society, whom I have mentioned before. My contact, Carlo Gambino, will provide you access into an area where your next target resides," Frank informed Darko. "He is known as the Guerrafondaio, Italian for the Warmonger. They say that it is his nickname because of his killing methods, which are bloody and brutal. Coincidentally, the Guerrafondaio is Carlo's superior, and Carlo believes that he will be able to ascend to a higher position with his death, hence his assistance."

At sunset, Darko met with Carlo Gambino on the pavement of a street. He introduced himself to Carlo as Dylan Aguerro, as Frank had agreed with Carlo earlier on as a means of identifying the man he sent.

"So you are the one Mister Gatti sent. I have to say, Mister Gatti is impressive, managing to fake his own death so easily," Carlo praised. "Anyway, the Guerrafondaio is holding a party tonight. The party will be held in a cul-de-sac at the end of a nearby alleyway. Security will be rather tight, but you can enter easily through the rooftops. Good luck, Mister…Aguerro."

Darko made his way into the party area through the rooftops. There were two guards at the alleyway entrance, both of them muscular and dangerous-looking. A short distance down the alleyway was where the party started. Partygoers were drinking alcohol and taking drugs.

In the cul-de-sac, Darko saw the Guerrafondaio himself, guarded by two Honoured Society gangsters and talking to several of the partygoers. He examined the Guerrafondaio and discovered that he was but a double. Carlo had told him that the Guerrafondaio had no eyebrows due to a genetic defect, but this double had slight, hardly-noticable eyebrows.

Not knowing where the real one was, Darko decided to lure him out. With a well-aimed shot, Darko took out the fake Guerrafondaio. Immediately the partygoers started to flee the scene. In the wave of confusion, Darko spotted the real Guerrafondaio leave one of the buildings, accompanied by a Honoured Society mobster, and run towards the exit.

Hopping off the vantage point, Darko landed on the mobster guarding the Guerrafondaio, which cushioned his fall but caused the mobster to break his spine, killing him almost right away. Darko got up and ran after the Guerrafondaio, who had not noticed that his guard was missing and dead.

"Signore!" Darko called out to the Guerrafondaio. He stopped and turned around, only to see the Assassin an arm's length away from him. Before the Guerrafondaio could move, Darko thrust his Hidden Blade into his heart. There was a loud sound as the Guerrafondaio collapsed, mostly due to his large body mass.

Over the next few days, news spread that a well-known hitman within the Honoured Society, known as the Guerrafondaio, had disappeared. A body double had been found dead nearby, with a bullet in him, but the man himself was no where to be found.

The reason for that was because Carlo had managed to remove the body from the scene quickly. The Guerrafondaio's body was now at the bottom of the sea, presumably never to be found again.

While Darko was gone, Nikolai had discovered that Enrico would be on an Italian Army ship bound for the French city of Marseille. The ship was set to leave in exactly three days from the port of Civitavecchia, near Rome. Enrico would be going under the alias of Corporal Angelo Amato. That meant that Enrico had most likely already departed from Palermo.

Not wanting to waste time, Darko immediately made his way to the harbour. He tried to find a ship heading northwards. After a few minutes of searching Darko found a steam-powered boat that was heading for Naples, though it was only leaving the next day.

"Messere, I offer you five hundred lira if you leave before daybreak," Darko offered. "I will, of course, give you more if you make haste to Naples."

The boat's captain, a balding Frenchman, licked his lips. It was a good offer. "Hop on. The boat will be able to leave in about ten minutes."

It left Palermo harbour in less than five. The boat moved swiftly along the Mediterranean, its captain wanting to reach the destination quickly in order to earn more money.

Roughly two days later the boat arrived at Naples. As promised, Darko rewarded the captain with a modest sum of five thousand lira. Five thousand lira was not a lot, being less than a thousand US dollars.

Luckily there was a railway service from Naples to Rome, which Darko took. The train was pretty fast, with the journey only taking about five hours. Darko travelled the remaining distance from Rome to Civitavecchia by horse. Now that he was at the location, all Darko could do for the time being was to wait.


	36. Chapter 36

Dressed in an Italian Army uniform which he had managed to acquire, Darko made his way to Civitavecchia Port. The Italian Army ship had docked and soldiers were starting to make their way there. On the way Darko tried to find Enrico Ferdinand, aka Angelo Amato, but to no avail.

Two soldiers were guarding the platform which led up to the deck of the ship. A third soldier was checking the identities of each soldier who boarded the ship. Praying for the best, Darko joined the queue.

A while later, it was Darko's turn. The soldier asked, "Name?"

"Surname's Bianchi," Darko replied, hoping that it would be enough.

"There are plenty of Bianchis on this list," the soldier said. "Which one are you, soldier?"

At that moment Darko managed to catch a glimpse of the list, or at least one page of it. "Sergeant Mario Bianchi."

"Ah, yes. There you are. You may board the ship, soldier."

On board the ship, Darko wasted no time in finding Enrico. He did not ask around, for the fear that Enrico would be alerted to his presence.

Soon he found Angelo in one of the bunks, relaxing on his bed. Walking up to Angelo, Darko 'introduced' himself. "I am Sergeant Mario Bianchi. You must be Corporal Amato, am I right?"

"Yes sir, I am Corporal Angelo Amato. May I help you?"

"Captain Bonde wishes to meet with you," Darko said, albeit in a softer voice.

Enrico's eyes widened. "Jacopo's on this ship? I thought he was in Marseille!"

Shaking his head, Darko lied, "Not yet, but he will be. He wishes to provide you information about that pesky Assassin. Darko Kerzhakov is his name, I believe."

Leading Enrico to a quiet section of the ship, Darko released his Hidden Blade and drew his pistol, pointing it at Enrico. "I've finally found you, Enrico. The Assassins say hello."

In three seconds, Enrico lay on the floor, with a gaping wound in his thigh. Having expected an attack in his vital organs, Enrico had raised his hands in defense. But he did not expect Darko to stab his thighs.

"So Jacopo is in Marseille, huh? That's interesting. Anyway, before you die I suppose you should know who's your killer. I'm Darko Kerzhakov, the 'pesky Assassin'. Rest in peace."

A while later, Enrico's dead body was found by one of the soldiers. There was a large slash wound at his throat, along with dried blood stained around it. Notified that there was a killer on the ship, the Italian Army ship docked at the nearest Allied settlement, which in that case was the city-state of Monaco.

Once the ship docked in Monaco, French soldiers who had been waiting boarded the ship, searching for the killer. Unfortunately for them, the killer, Darko, was already gone. He had escaped through an open window, swimming to shore after that.

From the nearby city of Nice, Darko took the train to Marseille. He had disposed of the Italian Army uniform and was now back in his Assassin uniform, as Darko knew that soldiers would be looking out for a runaway killer in an Italian Army uniform.

Darko arrived in Marseille in late February, 1916. It was a beautiful yet busy city, its port being one of the most active ones in the Mediterranean. The fact that the city was a major gateway into France attracted many immigrants, many of whom were Italian.

As he was having a traditional Marseillais meal in a restaurant facing the sea, Darko saw a trio of French soldiers barge into the establishment.

"Where is monsieur Vouilloz? the leader of the trio asked. "Tell him to come out here immediately!"

Shortly after, a thin, balding man came out. "I am monsieur Lucio Vouilloz. May I help you?"

In the blink of an eye the two soldiers had restricted Lucio's hands and were leading him out of the restaurant, with the leader walking in front.

Darko followed them into a nearby alleyway, where the soldiers proceeded to interrogate Lucio.

"Where are your Assassin friends?" he heard the leader ask.

"Assa…Assassin friends? You accuse me of being a killer?" Lucio's tone was more shocked than exasperated.

"Stop playing games with us, Assassin," the leader warned.

In response Lucio sprung his Hidden Blade, which had been cleverly hidden in his clothing. Moving with speed unexpected for his age, Lucio cut down the two soldiers with relative ease.

At that moment Darko chose to emerge. Aiming at the leader Darko fired a Phantom Blade in his thigh, causing him to fall. Lucio finished him off with a stab to his heart.

Passing the Phantom Blade back to Darko, Lucio said, "A fellow Assassin. We can talk later, but now we must dispose of the bodies. It won't do us good if the bodies are discovered."

The two Assassins worked together to dispose the bodies into the Mediterranean Sea, which was less than five hundred metres away. Once the job was done the two men headed back to the restaurant, where they chatted in the back.

"That's a long story you have there," Lucio commented once he finished talking. "So you're here for Jacopo Bonde, a Master Templar. That probably explains why the French soldiers here are on high alert."

"French soldiers? Are you saying that the men here are Templar-influenced?"

"More or less," Lucio shrugged. "The Templars in this region are under the command of Capitaine Jelani Sesay, who spent most of his childhood in German East Africa. At first he was in the French Foreign Legion, but became a Frenchman through localisation and was transferred to the French Army. All I'm going to say about Capitaine Sesay is that he's one cruel bastard."

"Like most Templars," Darko added. "If we want their influence to be weakened, we must eliminate the Templars here in Marseille."

"For years we've been trying to do that, but you could say we didn't have enough balls. With your arrival we might be able to accomplish just that."


	37. Chapter 37

Darko and Lucio were observing a ship that had recently docked in port. Men were working to unload the cargo off the ship, most of the time under the inspection of the ship's captain, a half-Kabyle, half-Arab man wearing a keffiyeh.

"Most know him as Khaled. He's a maritime trader with considerable influence in French port settlements and Algeria. If we take him out a good portion of the Templars' power in maritime trading in this region will vanish," Lucio explained.

Taking their time to analyse the pattern of the route that the soldiers took, the two Assassins finally struck fifteen minutes later. While Lucio kept watch, Darko went to do the deed.

"Mon dieu! Isn't that President Poincaré?" Lucio said loudly, attracting the attention of most in the area.

While the people were distracted, Darko 'casually' bumped into Khaled, taking advantage of the closeness between them to knock him unconscious. With a gentle kick Darko sent Khaled tumbling into the sea. Even with the mammalian diving reflex in action Darko doubt that Khaled would be able to survive.

Back in the restaurant, Lucio was given a piece of bad news by an Assassin contact.

"It appears that this restaurant is being watched by the Deuxième Bureau, external military intelligence agency of France," Lucio informed Darko. "Apparently the Deuxième Bureau was told that this location was being used by 'enemies of France'."

"Then I believe that it's only a matter of time before they're told that we two are 'enemies of France' and the Bureau sends men after us," Darko said. "We need to get rid of the men feeding the Bureau this information, and convince them that this place isn't being used by 'enemies of France'."

"One step ahead of you already," Lucio grinned. "I told my contact to sniff around and discover the identities of those men. All we can do now is wait."

Luckily they did not have to wait long. In one week or so, Lucio's contact returned with news. The man leading the surveillance operation on the restaurant was Sean Craymore, an English intelligence officer that had been assigned to work for Deuxième Bureau under some kind of transfer program. They learned that Sean was more of a talker than a fighter.

Sean lived in an apartment unit a working-class district of Marseille. Darko and Lucio knew that Sean would have protection of some sort.

As they scouted the location, the two of them spotted Sean leaving the apartment, wearing middle-class attire. Sean entered a black car parked right outside the building. They could not see what Sean was doing inside the vehicle as it had tinted windows.

"Shit, it's moving off," Lucio whispered. "Now is no better time to get him."

Looking over, Lucio realised that Darko had already taken off, chasing after the car. In a matter of seconds Darko caught up and was on the roof of the car. Sean, who had heard Darko landing on his car and knew what was happening, tried to shake Darko off the car but in vain.

Releasing his Hidden Blade, Darko leaned over and tried to break the front windscreen with it. The glass was slightly tougher than expected so he had to strike a second time before it shattered.

Just then, a gunshot rang out. Though the bullet missed him, Darko acted like he had been shot, clutching his heart while falling onto the top of the car.

"Are you alright, Mister Craymore?" Lucio asked with mock anxiety.

"I'm fine, but just a little shaken. Wait, aren't you…"

"Yes, I am the owner of the restaurant that's under surveillance by the Bureau," Lucio said. "The men who tipped you off that my restaurant was being used by 'enemies of France', they sent this hitman to kill you. Fortunately I stepped in in time to rescue you."

"Why would they try to kill me?" Sean was puzzled. "Weren't they the ones who wanted to help?"

"Must've thought that you were of no use to them anymore," Lucio lied. "You must not waste your resources on my allies and me, for we are your allies as well from now on. Now you should focus on those men who tried to kill you, also known as the Templars."

Once the two men left, Darko got up from the ground, dusted off the dust on his clothing and rushed off.

A few days later in the morning, Lucio received a letter, which he frowned upon reading. "It appears that Anatole France, a rather prominent journalist and novelist, a fellow Assassin as well, has been captured by the French soldiers 'under suspicion of treason'."

"Why isn't it in the newspapers? Monsieur France is rather famous in the whole of Europe, so why hasn't it been reported?"

"You see, Anatole is a pretty well-loved man in the country. Many call him as the ideal French man of letters. It would be unwise to offend Anatole, even more so if he is cleared of his charges," Lucio explained. "That is, if he has any charges at all. This is undoubtedly the work of Templars, who are working to remove us Assassins from society."

"Where is monsieur France? We must free him quickly," Darko said.

"The Sûreté headquarters in Marseille," Lucio replied. "Most likely it'll be decently protected, since the Templars know very well that Anatole is a longtime and one of the most powerful Assassins in Europe."

Lucio had somehow managed to get two pieces of Sûreté nationale uniforms. Donning the uniforms and equipping themselves, the two Assassins made their way to the police headquarters.

"Salut," the policeman on guard said as the two men entered the police headquarters. The two Assassins nodded in acknowledgement.

After searching around for roughly half an hour, taking their time to move around so that they would not appear suspicious, Darko and Lucio finally found where Anatole was being held.

Picking the door's lock open, Lucio entered while Darko kept watch outside. Half a minute later the two of them came back out.

"You must be the Assassin Lucio came with," Anatole said, examining Darko. "I'll spare my introduction, since Lucio says you already know who I am. Other formalities can be put on hold. First we must leave this place, before the Templars realise that I'm not inside."

The escape was a very smooth one, as many of the personnel in the building did not even know that Anatole had been arrested. Most of them even greeted him as he walked by, Anatole being some sort of a national figure.

Back in the restaurant, Darko made his introduction to Anatole and the latter was brought up to speed by Lucio and Darko.

"Seems like another battle of the shadows has begun between the Assassins and Templar," Anatole commented. "I'm too old for combat, but if you all do need any other help feel free to let me know. I wish you luck in your quest."


	38. Chapter 38

The French Assassins did not take kindly to Anatole's arrest by the Templars. Within a few days every Assassin in France had heard of Anatole's arrest and rescue, along with several other Assassins outside of the country. Together they showed the Templars what it was like to incur the wrath of the French Assassins, launching a brutal offensive against them.

Darko and Lucio expectedly joined in to help with the offensive. However, their work was not as exciting as usual, with most of their duties only collecting information and whatnot.

Nearly a week after the offensive began was when Darko and Lucio embarked on their first mission that was considered 'exciting'. Their mission, as given to them by the Mentor of the French Assassins, was to disable a communication channel being used by Templars in the French Army, disguised as an official military channel.

Information gathered by other Assassins revealed that a location in Montpellier was being used as a central for the particular channel.

Soon the two Assassins found that the location was a small walled compound just a few kilometres outside Montpellier. The compound was pretty bare, with only a small one-storey building and a tall radio tower. It was officially a military installation, but Darko and Lucio knew otherwise.

Using a pair of wire cutters to cut open a part of the barbed wire chainlink fence, the two of them stormed into the compound.

Darko unloaded roughly half a clip from the Remington Model 8, a semi-automatic rifle. The rifles Darko and Lucio were using were the same, and their rifles had a 15-round box magazine attached to them.

Together the two men rounded up all the soldiers in the compound and tied them up. Once the job was done, Darko went on to destroy the radio tower with an IED while Lucio proceeded to destroy the equipment in the box-shaped building.

"Au revoir," Lucio said with an ironic bow to the soldiers before leaving.

With an all-out offensive mounted on them, the Templars obviously did not just sit and watch as their power and influence dwindled in the country.

Two days after returning to Marseille, the restaurant was attacked by a squad of masked military policemen, easily identifiable by the word 'Gendarmerie' in white on their black vests.

Both Assassins knew that a counterattack of some sort would be carried out by the Templars soon, especially after the taking down of their radio base outside Montpellier, and they had already made plans.

Raising their hands in surrender, Darko and Lucio walked slowly towards the squad of military policemen.

"Arrest those men," ordered the leader of the police squad. His entire squad was equipped with Lebel Model 1886s, the rifle of choice for the French Army.

Both Assassins were escorted out of the restaurant in handcuffs, only to be knocked unconscious once they were outside.

Darko was woken up by a bucket of water being poured onto him. He found his hands and legs tied to a chair by rope. He saw Jelani Sesay, leader of the Templars in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur, France, right in front of his face.

"Had a good sleep, Assassin?" Jelani asked with mock politeness. "If you're ready we can begin our chat."

"Certainly, what would you wish to chat about today?" Darko said with an equal amount of mockery.

Jelani said, "As we speak two wars are going on. One is the Great War, and the other is the Assassin-Templar war. The current phase of the Assassin-Templar war in France is…taking a toll on my fellow Templars. Being the leader of my people, I must intervene to minimise casualties."

"That's a nice way to put it," Darko rolled his eyes. "So you want to know where other Assassins are. You're out of luck, unfortunately."

"Who said I was going to rely on luck to get answers? I'll let you rest for the remainder of today. Tomorrow we begin the fun," Jelani said before leaving the room.

Knowing what Jelani meant by fun, Darko did not want to stay to find out exactly what 'fun' Jelani had in store for him. Using his Hidden Footblade, which had been lent to him by Lucio and had not been discovered by the military policemen, Darko cut the ropes tied around his ankles. In the next ten seconds Darko managed to get his hands free as well.

Opening the door, Darko kicked the man standing guard outside in the stomach, releasing his Hidden Footblade at the same time. The guard staggered backwards, his stomach bleeding profusely now.

Not wanting to wait for the man to fall, Darko ran off, searching for Lucio. It turned out that Lucio was being held in a room at the end of the corridor, and standing outside the room was a military policeman as well.

Rushing towards the policeman, Darko gave him a good push, making him topple onto the floor. The man was knocked unconscious when his head slammed against the floor. Lucio was being questioned by an interrogator, who was accompanied by two military policeman guards.

The interrogator and a guard felt their heads being forced downwards by an unknown force. While the guard's head slammed straight onto the cement floor, the interrogator's forehead broke through a portion of the chair before hitting the floor. Both men were out cold in the next second.

Before the last guard could react, Darko grabbed a bundle of rope from the nearby table and tied him up as Darko pinned him to the floor. Darko gagged him as a 'finishing touch'.

Untying Lucio, Darko helped him up from the half-destroyed chair. Lucio took one of the men's rifles, which was fitted with a bayonet. "Take one too," Lucio recommended. "It works well as a melee weapon."

"It's alright," Darko declined. "I already have your Footblade."

Sounds were coming out of a closed-door room Darko and Lucio were walking by, which piqued their curiousity. Looking through the keyhole, Darko gasped.

"Jacopo Bonde!" Darko whispered excitedly into Lucio's ear. "He's in the room with Jelani and a lot of guards!"

"Then obviously we can't take them on now," Lucio said. "Let's get out of here, quick."

"No, they're surveying our equipment! Our stuff is inside right now!" Darko told him.

It was Lucio's turn to look through the keyhole, so that he could know the room's layout. "Alright, you'll charge in first, but make sure not to get in my way. I will fire off a shot at Jelani, hopefully killing him. Meanwhile amidst all the confusion you'll grab as much of our equipment as possible."

"One…two…three!"


	39. Chapter 39

The door flung open and an Assassin rushed into the room, heading towards the equipment laid out on the table. Simultaneously, a shot rang out, causing Jelani to fall onto the floor, clutching his heart.

In two seconds, the Assassin, Darko, had secured and worn his Hidden and Phantom Blades, both of which were on the same reinforced black leather bracer. At the same time, Darko took Lucio's Hidden Blade and pistol, also on the table.

Lucio dropped the rifle he was holding and moved over to Darko, taking his Hidden Blade and pistol. "Thanks," Lucio said as he put on his equipment.

Guards had been evenly spaced across the room, backs against the wall. Now they were scattered because of all the confusion. The guards' numbers were rapidly diminishing, with Darko and Lucio cutting them down ruthlessly and swiftly.

By the time the chaos and confusion dissipated, only two military guards, Jacopo and his bodyguard remained.

"What are you waiting for? Stop them!" Jacopo ordered the two policemen. Knowing that those two men were no match for the Assassins, Jacopo and his bodyguard made their getaway.

"Take them, Lucio. I'm going for that bastard."

Chasing after Jacopo, Darko was like a tornado, quick and deadly. Guards that were unfortunate enough to be along the way were cut down by Darko, who did not want to waste time on them.

A wagon transport was depositing soldiers when Jacopo and his bodyguard emerged from the building. He ran straight for it, throwing the horse rider out of his seat and shouting, "Arrest those killers!"

Darko barely managed to get onto the back of the same wagon, which had the words 'PROPRIÉTÉ DU FORCES ARMÉES FRANÇAISES' on its sides.

Almost immediately the bodyguard and Darko went into battle, fighting on the wagon. To onlookers it was a French Army recruitment advertisement, which they watched with excitement.

The bodyguard thrust his 1897 Pattern Sword at Darko. Darko sidestepped the attack and brought his Hidden Blade down on the Pattern Sword, restricting its movement.

However, the bodyguard had been expecting Darko to do something similar, and now had a pistol aiming right at Darko. Darko rolled out of the way just as the bodyguard pulled the trigger. He survived the attack, though in exchange the bodyguard regained use of his sword.

Deflecting a blow with his Hidden Blade, Darko launched his Phantom Blade, resulting it to be buried in the bodyguard's wrist. The bodyguard howled in agony as he staggered backwards. Surging forward, Darko forced his Phantom Blade out of the bodyguard's wrist and stabbed it into his chest.

Seconds later, a Phantom Blade raced through the air. Jacopo, who just happened to turn around, saw the Phantom Blade flying towards him and swerved the wagon sideways. The blade flew off the wagon, landing harmlessly onto the road.

Darko was within an arm's length on Jacopo when the latter drew a pistol and fired it. Instinctively, Darko fell down on the surface of the wagon. The bullet passed overhead. But before Darko could get up Jacopo fired another bullet. Darko rolled to his side, using the side of the wagon which was right in front of his face to get up. Jacopo's second bullet was in the wagon floor where Darko was just moments ago.

Jacopo would have fired a third bullet from his pistol if the side of the wagon had not crashed into a lit gas lamp post. With the glass encasing the flame shattered, the fire quickly spread.

All three passengers dived off the wagon at almost the same time, knowing that the wagon would be completely useless very soon.

Five French soldiers were in the vicinity of the crash. Seeing them, Jacopo ordered, "Useless scélérat, get him!"  
Jacopo seemed to be some kind of big shot among the French soldiers in the city, probably because the Templars had influence over local soldiers. They drew their weapons and circled around Darko as Jacopo made a run for it.

Darko was about to surrender, knowing that his Hidden Blade was no match for the five bayonet rifles, when he spotted Jacopo's late bodyguard's Pattern Sword lying on the ground less than three metres from him.

He dived for the sword just as two of the soldiers closed in. Darko turned around and parried the rifle bayonet with the sword. Kicking the soldier in front of him in the crotch, Darko thrust the Pattern Sword backwards, ripping into the flesh of the thighs of the second soldier.

Getting up, Darko hurled the sword at a third soldier who was preparing to shoot him. The sword hit him just below the collarbone, and its weight and momentum threw the soldier onto the ground. As he retrieved the sword, Darko heard a gun go off, followed by a searing pain in his abdomen.

"Bloody hell," Darko swore as he clutched his stomach. The two soldiers, thinking that it would be an easy fight from then on, advanced on him. How wrong they were.

"This man will not go down so easily," Darko said as he slashed the air with the sword to keep the soldiers at bay.

At that moment Lucio arrived and shot the two surviving soldiers. "Hurry, get on," Lucio said, panting. "I hear friends are waiting at the restaurant."


	40. Chapter 40

True enough, several Assassins were in the restaurant when Darko and Lucio returned, including Anatole France and Frank Gatti and Nikolai, who had travelled from Palermo.

"This is certainly a reunion," Darko joked as an Assassin medic treated his bullet wound. "Why did you all come to Marseille?"

"Can't a man visit his younger brother?" Nikolai joked. "Just kidding. Frank and I received word that France was becoming a hotspot for Assassin and Templar activity, and knowing that you were in Marseille, we came to check it out."

Anatole said, "Now with Jelani dead, the French Assassins are rapidly gaining power, mostly by taking over the positions that the Templars once held."

"Jacopo Bonde managed to escape," Lucio informed. "We'll have to monitor the borders."

"It'll be a waste of effort. Jacopo knows that the Assassins will be searching for him. I'm fairly certain that Jacopo will attempt to leave the country by air, with the support of remaining Templars in the French Army," Anatole reasoned. "Dijon Air Base, in his opinion, will be a perfect choice, away from us lot in Marseille and the Assassins in Paris, one of the largest Assassin forces in Europe."

One hour later, after Darko had a short but much-needed time to recover from his bullet wound, him, Nikolai, Frank and Lucio made their way to Dijon by train. They were sure that they would reach Dijon before Jacopo, since Jacopo would not dare to use the railway due to searching Assassins.

A train line existed which brought them to Dijon fairly quickly, making only one stop in Lyon, which was about in the middle of the two cities.

In Dijon, the four Assassins made their way into the air base disguised as French commandos. To the Aéronautique Militaire they were reinforcements sent by the French Army.

Frank was guarding the entrance into the air base along with three soldiers when a Ford Model T pulled up outside. He walked up to the side of the car and saw that Jacopo Bonde himself was behind the wheel.

"Mister Bonde," Frank said with a nod. "The Assassins tried to attack the air base a few hours ago, disguised as rebels. We barely managed to drive them out."

Jacopo sighed. "Those Assassins have killed a good number of Templars in the country. We're losing power rapidly. Do you have a plane ready for flight?"

"We do," Frank replied. "The Assassins were trying to destroy the planes, and they succeeded in destroying some."

Once the car drove into the air base, Frank radioed in to the other three Assassins who were residing within the base. "Jacopo Bonde has just driven into the air base. He's driving a Ford Model T, and is making he's planning to fly out of France."

Minutes later, Darko, Nikolai and Lucio were patrolling the hangars armed with Lebel Model 1893s, the standard rifle of the French infantry.

Jacopo's Ford Model T stopped outside a nearby hangar, where two other soldiers were waiting. The Assassins immediately tagged them as Templars or Templar affiliates.

Raising their rifles, Darko muttered loud enough so only Nikolai and Lucio could hear, "On the count of three. One, two…"

Three shots went off in near-unison. Both soldiers collapsed while Jacopo deflected the third bullet thanks to his Shard of Eden. "Ah, the Assassins," Jacopo said calmly.

In his eyes Darko detected something that he had not seen in their last encounter. That something was fear. Pulling out the Pattern Sword which he had kept, Darko ran towards Jacopo.

Jacopo swiftly drew his sword, a cavalry sword, and parried the blow. He retaliated by trying to kick Darko in the crotch, which failed.

Sidestepping the kick, Darko brought his heel down on Jacopo's shin, causing the latter to stumble backwards. Darko closed in, thrusting his sword into Jacopo's heart.

However, at that moment, Jacopo's Shard of Eden deflected the attack, saving his life. Not anticipating the protection from the ring, Darko dropped the sword.

"Not so powerful now eh, Assassin?" Jacopo said with a smug grin as he picked up the Pattern Sword. "How nice of you to bring back my late bodyguard's sword. It would be great if I could use his weapon to avenge his death, wouldn't it?"

At that moment three Templar soldiers showed up, having heard sounds of battle coming from nearby. Seeing the Assassins, the soldiers took out their rifles. Luckily before they could fire a single shot, Nikolai and Lucio shot them dead.

Seizing the second that Jacopo was distracted because of the arrival of the soldiers, Darko retrieved the Pattern Sword and even managed to pull the damned ring off Jacopo's finger.

"Not so powerful now eh, Templar?" Darko said with mockery as he slipped the Shard of Eden on his finger.

He moaned in pain as two bullets, fired by Lucio from behind, buried themselves into his back. The momentum forced Jacopo on his knees.

"Your madness ends today, Jacopo Bonde," Darko declared, preparing to slit his throat with the Pattern Sword.

"But that doesn't mean I'll go down easily," Jacopo retorted, weakly deflecting the incoming sword with his own one.

Darko kicked Jacopo hard in the stomach, causing him to cough out blood. Before Jacopo recovered Darko slit his throat with the Pattern Sword.

The Assassins saw soldiers loyal to the Templars closing in on the right while Assassins soldiers came from the left. The Assassin numbers outnumbered that of the Templars, who were also low in morale.

"Put your guns down!" Frank, who was leading the soldiers loyal to the Assassins, ordered the Templars.

Darko grabbed Jacopo's dead body by the hair and held it up to let the Templar soldiers see. "If you all wish to do foolish things, I assure you that you will end up like your fellow Templar here, Jacopo Bonde."

After some hesitation the Templar soldiers dropped their weapons, signalling their surrender. Immediately the Assassins captured them and brought them away.

"This is a job well done," Frank, who was most senior out of the four, said as they were on the train back to Marseille. "Darko, what you've done over the past one, two years is what an ordinary Assassin would accomplish over a decade or so. Minimally you deserve a good rest."

Nikolai agreed. "My brother has travelled an awful lot over the past few months or so. Rest is really what he needs, in my opinion."

"Since you all insist that I should take a break, then it is a long break I shall take, then," Darko said with a chuckle.


End file.
